Burned QC property owner lack permits, says official
An estimated property loss was pegged at P3.6 million.
Personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection investigate the rental house in Barangay San Isidro, Galas, Quezon City which was razed by a fire last Thursday. At least eight individuals were confirmed dead in the blaze.
Photograph by Analy Labor for the daily tribune @tribunephl_ana
The owner of a three-story house in Quezon City that was burned Thursday morning which killed eight tenants is facing potential legal issues.
According to Margie Mejia, chief of the Business Permit and Licensing Department (BPLD), the building has no records indicating that the owner converted the house into rental units.
Mejia told DAILY TRIBUNE that the owner should have applied for a business permit as a lessor for the owner’s protection and the tenants’ protection.
Meantime, Quezon City Fire Marshal Sr. Supt. Flor-Ian Guerrero said arson investigators are conducting a case build-up regarding the incident to determine the owner’s liabilities.
To recall, eight people — including a two-year-old boy — died in the early morning fire that started on the second floor of a three-story structure at 18/19 De Agosto Street, Barangay San Isidro, at around 2 a.m. Thursday.
The victims, Mylene Villamor Francis, Anjo Topas Villamor, a two-year-old boy, Ashley Topas Francis, Jacqueline Pablo Abu, Joel Gammad Abu, Vince Yuan Pablo Abu and Juliana Pablo, were all in their rented rooms and suffocated.
Four other tenants luckily escaped the blaze.
The fire, believed to have been caused by faulty electrical wiring, started in the hallway of the second floor, spread quickly and consumed the entire house, which was made of light materials.
An estimated property loss was pegged at P3.6 million, with the house registered under the name Ruth Capili Lim.