MANILA – At least four persons were confirmed dead while 14 others were injured in a fire that razed the Manila Pavilion casino in Ermita, Manila on Sunday.
The remains of the four victims had been recovered.
The Manila Police District Tactical Operations Center (MPD-TOC) said as of 10:20 a.m., two of the four reported dead were identified as Jun Evangelista, a treasury officer, and Billy De Castro, an intern security.
The MPD-TOC also reported that among the injured in the incident were identified as Edilberto Evangelista, Jennifer Figueroa and Billy de Castro.
A female officer of the BFP Operations Center told the Philippine News Agency that as of past 1 p.m., firefighters have yet to place the fire under control.
“Ma’am, around 11:30 am po naka-receive po kami ng tawag na Task Force Bravo until now. Ibig sabihin po nito tinatawagan na ang mga karatig lungsod na magpadala ng fire truck nila para tumulong (Ma’am, around 11:30 am, we received a call that it is Task Force Bravo until now. This means all nearby cities are requested to send fire trucks to help), the officer said.
The BFP said the Manila Pavillion Hotel fire started at 9:30 a.m. and was raised to 5th alarm by 10:09 a.m.
The fire was eventually raised to Task Force Alpha at 11:07 a.m., which means that all fire stations, including those of neighboring cities, shall respond to the alarm.