MindanaoToday.com | 3 kids killed in Bukidnon fire
By: Uriel Quilinguing
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – Bodies of three children were found charred on Thursday, March 7, in a two-floor residential structure that was gutted by fire shortly before noon in Kalilangan town, Bukidnon province, according to the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
Fire Officer 2 Jerommeh Ampatua, BFP Municipal Fire Station spokesperson, named the fatalities as Lance Jaser Bombaes, 3; Drake Knightly Mamon, 3; and Casandria Cope Mamon, 1, Their bodies were found on the second level of the burnt house at President Quirino Street of Barangay Poblacion.
Marivic Reyes, 55, grandmother of the victims, and Honeylyn Reyes, mother of Drake and Casandria, sustained burns trying to rescue the children. They were brought to a medical facility.
Honeylyn was downstairs washing clothes when the fire occurred, minutes after she had bathed the children.
Lucia Reyes, Lance’s mother, was out working in a private firm when she got a call. She arrived after firefighters had contained the blaze, according a Valencia City-based radio reporter.
Senior Fire Officer 1 Roy Obsioma said the second-floor of the building was already burned when they arrived, though they responded in dispatch. The cause has not been determined yet, as of this writing.
The over four-decade old structure was owned by German dela Cruz, a former village official. It was rented by the Reyeses.
A day earlier, March 6, a fire incident also occurred past midnight in Malaybalay, Bukidnon’s capital city that burned four rooms of a building in Bangcud Central Elementary School. The structure was made of wooden materials and constructed over 30 years ago.
Fire Officer 3 Brent Juico of Malaybalay City Fire Station told a radio reporter from Brigada Valencia City, the blaze that lasted for over an hour originated from the school’s storage room. (MT)
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