Early morning fire hits commercial building
Portions of the glass panel on the second floor of
the RL Cooper Building in Iznart Street were broken
by firefighters to control the fire.
A.Chris Fernandez photo
Arson investigators have not yet determined the cause of fire that razed a three-story commercial building in downtown Iloilo City early morning yesterday.
Investigators, however, bared that the fire originated at City Salon, a beauty shop, which then spread to the adjoining establishments, Anifel Placement Agency, Q Logic Inc. and Camp Jefferson nightclub. City Salon was totally burned while the three other establishments were partially burned.
Investigation of the city's Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) showed that the fire broke out around 3:40 in the morning of Tuesday.
Firefighters had difficulty controlling the fire because it thickened in the middle portion of the building.
Firetrucks from neighboring districts and municipalities even joined in putting out the blaze which was placed under control around 4:45 a.m.
Initial inventory by arson investigators placed the damage at P1 million.
An employee of City Salon who refused to be identified wondered why the fire occurred. The employee said they normally switch off their main power before they leave the beauty shop after closing at night.
The source added that they also make sure that all their electrical equipment are switched off before closing.