By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga
At least six people were killed while a foreigner was reported to be in critical condition after a fire struck the Java Pension House along Gonzaga Street in Bacolod City, yesterday morning.
Authorities identified fatalities as Christopher Java, the pension house’s owner; Java’s 12-year-old son Miguel and 70-year-old motherMagdalena; and housekeeper, 44-year-old Ronalyn Dacallo.
Two of the fatalities, meanwhile, have yet to be identified.
Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Bacolod fire marshal, Fire Chief Inspector Publio Ploteña, said the fire reportedly started at around 4:00 a.m. at the ground floor hallway of the building and traveled to the upper floors.
A video of the blaze’s beginning surfaced showing a motorcycle on fire located near the hotel’s entrance.
A majority of the hotel’s guest managed to escape, although others were forced to either climb up or break in the establishment’s top floor.
Ploteña said some of the guests are unaware of the fire until they heard the blaring sirens of fire trucks.
An unidentified Australian citizen, presently confined at the Riverside Medical Center, is reported to be in a critical condition after he was trapped in one of the rooms and rescued two hours after the start of fire.
Other guests who incurred crucial injuries were rushed to Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital, while those who suffered minor wounds were given first aid by responders.
A “fire out” was declared at around 9:12 a.m.
Ploteña said Java and his family’s remains were found at the second floor near Room 203, which serves as the family’s residence.
The fire marshall said based on where the bodies were found, it is possible that they were trying to vacate the place but were knocked unconscious and subsequently suffocated to their deaths due to the thick smoke.
Two of the victims found at the upper floors, meanwhile, were burned beyond recognition.
Ploteña said they are still in the process of gathering witnesses and reviewing close circuit television cameras to determine what caused the blaze.
The fire marshall stated three possible causes: one being the fire was electrical, second was due to a fight, while the third was that three unidentified individuals tried to steal the motorcycle by jump starting it which ultimately caused the blaze.
The fire marshall also admitted that the blaze was the worst in Bacolod City this year, with damages estimated at P8 million./DGB, WDJ
