MANILA, Philippines – A massive fire engulfed a residential area in Isla Puting Bato in Tondo, Manila on Sunday, November 24.
Response teams from multiple government agencies assisted in putting the fire out.
The first fire alert was reported at 8:02 am. Authorities declared Task Force Charlie, which means at least 32 fire trucks should be deployed to help control the fire, at 11:51 am.
Based on an update from the Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Office, it took six hours before the fire was under control and took another two hours — or by 4:07 pm — before officials declared the area cleared.
The Philippine Air Force deployed air assets to help with the fire incident by doing heli-bucket operations or by dumping water in areas engulfed by the fire. Its Black Hawk helicopter was able to conduct 15 heli-bucket operations, the Bell 205 completed 26, and the SOKOL helicopter completed 59.
“The fire… has devastated over 1,000 structures and displaced approximately 2,000 families,” the PAF said in a Facebook post at 6:31 pm on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard also assisted in the fire incident.
The Tutuban Fire Volunteer Association also responded to the fire incident. Black smoke engulfed the entire area, as seen on photos published on their Facebook page.
The Philippine Ports Authority, together with the International Container Terminal Services, led the rescue operations for the affected residents. Families are currently housed in Delpan Evacuation Center in Manila.
As of writing, there has been no reports of casualties from the incident. – Rappler.com