DUMAGUETE CITY – All nine individuals injured in a fire that razed the Canlaon City booth at the Buglasan Festival grounds in this city have been declared safe after receiving medical attention, authorities said Thursday.
The announcement came during a press conference as fire investigators and other concerned agencies began a joint assessment and inspection of the remaining festival booths to ensure public safety.
Provincial Administrator Fran Tolcidas said the provincial government is providing the necessary assistance to the victims and to the local government unit (LGU) of Canlaon City.
Dr. Liland Estacion, Negros Oriental provincial health officer, said seven of the injured were brought to the Silliman University Medical Center (SUMC), while two were taken to the Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital (NOPH).
One of those initially admitted to SUMC was later transferred to ACE Dumaguete Doctors Hospital, while a patient at NOPH was discharged early Thursday morning.
“This morning, with our administrator, we went to SUMC and saw the six persons admitted there,” Estacion said.
She said two of the injured were children aged five and eight. Their injuries ranged from minor burns to a sprain, abrasion and fracture, but all were reported safe.
Videos uploaded by netizens on Facebook showed some people jumping from the second floor of the burning booth. Authorities have yet to identify the individuals seen in the footage.
Senior Supt. Gerry Berte, acting regional director of the Bureau of Fire Protection in the Negros Island Region (BFP-NIR), said public safety remains the agency’s top priority and ordered a thorough investigation into the incident.
Berte said the festival booths met the necessary construction requirements before the Buglasan Festival opened on Oct. 14.
“In coordination with the provincial government of Negros Oriental, the city government of Dumaguete and the Buglasan Festival Safety and Security Committee, (will) undertake re-assessment and re-inspection of festival booths and electrical installations, temporary structures, and other potential fire hazards,” Berte said.
Chief Insp. Johannes Gimotea, caretaker of the Negros Oriental Provincial Fire Marshal’s Office and concurrent Dumaguete City fire marshal, said the initial investigation pointed to a suspected spontaneous combustion inside the booth as the possible cause of the fire.
He said the assessment was based on evidence gathered at the scene and witness statements.
Gimotea said investigators found a three-gang electrical outlet inside the booth that appeared to have come loose, possibly due to heavy foot traffic as visitors entered and exited the structure.
Authorities received the fire alarm around 9:04 p.m. Wednesday and arrived at the scene two minutes later, he said.
The fire was brought under control within three minutes, and a fire-out declaration was issued at 9:15 p.m.
The fire caused an estimated PHP50,000 in damage.
Meanwhile, Tolcidas said the Canlaon City booth, which had been judged at the opening of the Buglasan Festival, would remain in the competition despite being destroyed by Wednesday’s fire.
(PNA)
