ORMOC CITY– A member of the local fire bureau and a fisherman were wounded during a fire that gutted a commercial establishment owned by the local government of Dolores, Eastern Samar.
The incident occurred at approximately 11:48 pm on Thursday (May 16) and continued until the early morning of Friday (May 17) at the Dolores Commercial Establishment in Brgy 03, Dolores town.
The victims were identified as “Gil,” 40, a fisherman and resident of Brgy 10, and “Juls,” 28, a fire officer assigned to the Dolores Fire Station and resident of Brgy. Can-Abong, Borongan City.
According to the local fire bureau, the fire started in one of the ten establishments of the commercial center, though the origin has yet to be determined.
During the fire, Gil was hit in the face by debris and was transported to the Eastern Visayas Medical Center in Tacloban City for further medical attention, while Juls suffered a slight injury from fallen debris and received first aid at the station.
SFO1 Joy R. Macawile, Dolores fire and arson investigator, declared the fire under control at about 3:20 am and completely extinguished by 4 am on Friday.
The local fire bureau estimated the cost of the damage at approximately P3 million.
The BFP Dolores is now conducting a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the fire.
The blaze, which reached the first alarm level, was battled by fire trucks and personnel from BFP stations in San Julian, Dolores, Sulat, Taft, Can-avid, Oras, and San Policarpo. (ROBERT DEJON)
