3 people die, 2 hurt in Makati fire

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MANILA – Three women died while two men were injured in a fire that hit a transient house in Barangay Pio del Pilar, Makati City before dawn Friday.

Senior Insp. Pedro Espinosa of the Makati Fire Department said only two of the fatalities were immediately identified. They were Adriane Longab, 36, and Elvie Longab.

The third fatality, described as about 20 years old, remained unidentified as of Friday afternoon.

Those injured were identified as Roleo Gilmar Ilow, 24, who sustained third degree burns, and Ryan Perez, 28, who suffered first-degree burns. They were taken to the Ospital ng Makati for emergency treatment.

Espinosa said the fire struck the two-storey boarding house along Santillan St. at around 2:18 a.m. It reached the 2nd alarm before it was put out by responding firefighters at about 3:27 a.m.

Isabelita Taingco, 70, owner of the boarding house, said the dead victims were from Baguio City and had been renting one of the rooms in the boarding house for the past month.

Arson investigators are investigating the cause of the fire that destroyed at least PhP1 million worth of properties.

The boarding house was already old and made mostly of wood, the fire department said.