CEBU CITY – An ailing 75-year-old man was trapped and killed in a fire that hit a house in Barangay Tisa here on Tuesday morning, Feb. 11.

A SEPTUAGENARIAN died in a fire that hit a house in Barangay Tisa, Cebu City on Tuesday morning, Feb. 11. (CDRRMO)
The Cebu City Fire Station identified the victim as Francisco Labra.
Labra was sleeping alone on the ground floor when the fire broke out at 6:48 a.m.
Arson investigators suspect that the victim suffocated from the thick smoke that prevented him from escaping when the fire started to spread.
Ronald Dagatan, house owner, said they were sleeping on the second floor of the house when they were awakened by thick smoke.
He said they tried to save his father-in-law but the thick smoke prevented them from reaching the ground floor.
Dagatan and family escaped by jumping from the terrace of the house, said Senior Fire Officer 2 Wendell Villanueva, information officer of CCFS.
Damage to property was estimated at P450,000. The fire was put out at 7:22 a.m.
Faulty electrical wiring was suspected to be the cause of fire.