At least 15 workers died when they were trapped in a fire that gutted a two-storey residential-commercial building housing a t-shirt factory in Pleasant View Subdvision, Barangay Tandang Sora, Quezon City on Thursday morning, Aug. 31.
The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) said the fire status was raised to first alarm at around 5:30 a.m. and was declared under control at around 6:44 a.m.
The blaze was extinguished at around 8:04 a.m.
Authorities have yet to disclose the amount of damage to property caused by the blaze as well as the number of families/individuals affected.
The BFP and Quezon City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (QCDRRMO) personnel retrieved the bodies of the victim after responders were able to put out the fire.
In an interview, BFP Regional Director Chief Supt. Nahum B. Tarozza said that following their inspection, they found out that the commercial building only has one entrance and exit door and the t-shirt printing business operating inside it has no fire safety permit.
He said that the 15 fatalities, who were personnel of the t-shirt printing business, were staying at the rooms at the back part of the building when the incident happened. Their names have not been disclosed.
He added that the victims allegedly attempted to escape but failed. Their bodies were found outside their rooms.
The BFP chief said that the fire allegedly originated from the old office of the business which was located on the first floor of the building according to the witness, while some of the materials used for the t-shirt printing are flammable such as paint and plastic.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
“Taus-pusong nakikiramay ang lokal na pamahalaan ng Lungsod Quezon sa pamilya at kaanak ng mga biktima ng sunog sa isang gusali sa Barangay Tandang Sora ngayong umaga (The local government of Quezon City expresses its heartfelt condolences to the family and relatives of the victims of the fire in a building in Barangay Tandang Sora this morning),” the city governement said.
It said the City Social Services Development Department (SSDD) is now coordinating with the families of the deceased victims to provide them with assistance.
“Sa ngayon, inaalam na ng Department of Building Official (DBO) at Business Permit and Licensing Department (BPLD) kung may sapat na permit at dokumento ang negosyo na gumagamit ng establisimyento. Kabilang sa aalamin ay kung may paglabag sa National Building Code, Fire Code of the Philippines, zoning ordinance, business permit, occupancy permit at iba pang mga batas at ordinansa (Currently, the Department of Building Official (DBO) and Business Permit and Licensing Department (BPLD) are checking if the business using the establishment has enough permits and documents. Among the things to be investigated is if there is a violation of the National Building Code, Fire Code of the Philippines, zoning ordinance, business permit, occupancy permit and other laws and ordinances),” the local government said.
“Nais naming tiyakin sa publiko, lalo na sa pamilya ng mga biktima, na bibigyang-prayoridad namin ang malalimang imbestigasyon upang mapanagot ang mga ahensya o indibidwal na nagkaroon ng pagkukulang na nagdulot ng insidenteng ito, kasabay ng pagpapatupad ng mga dagdag na hakbang at polisiya para maiwasang maulit ito sa hinaharap (We would like to assure the public, especially the families of the victims, that we will give priority to a thorough investigation to hold accountable the agencies or individuals who made the mistake that caused this incident, along with the implementation of additional measures and policies to prevent it from happening again in the future),” it added.