Binondo building collapse damages storefront

Two people were treated at a hospital Thursday evening after a two-story residential house and an attached storefront collapsed in Manila’s Binondo district.

The Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office reported that the structural collapse occurred at a property owned by Fernando Ang along Sevilla Street in Barangay 272.

The incident damaged a small refreshment store attached to the residential building.

Initial reports indicated five people were inside or near the shop during the collapse, but emergency responders confirmed that only two sustained minor injuries.

Investigators identified the injured as a 13-year-old customer, who suffered head contusions and arm abrasions when debris from the roof struck him, and 29-year-old shop operator Maribelle Nepomuceno, who sustained a head contusion.

Both victims were brought to Justice Jose Abad Santos General Hospital for medical evaluation and treatment.

Three others inside the storefront escaped injury — storekeeper Cindy Openano, Nepomuceno’s mother-in-law, Dolores Perez and Nepomuceno’s 5-year-old son, who was sleeping in a crib when the structure gave way.

City building officials and disaster response teams are conducting an investigation to determine the cause of the collapse and are questioning the property owner regarding the structural integrity of the building.