Fire in Addition Hills

P1040133, originally uploaded by Eric Gozar.

"This nightmarish scene is something you dread to see if fire breaks out near your neighborhood. With trembling hands you seek for your car keys trying to plan out which things should go to the car after you have evacuated the family. But first things first and your "fight or flight" instinct tells you that the house should also be secure, so you drive your family to a safe distance and go back to your house, hopefully guarded by a relative or a friend as looting is as worse as a house being burned."

The smell of something burning led me to the bathroom, and on peeking out from the bathroom window, the red glow on the sky (traditionally an ominous sign) tells me there is a fire in the neighborhood. I sounded a calm alarm to my family, gave them instructions and proceeded to get my emergency kit, the car keys and the flashlight, and my ever trusted cellfone to call the fire department.

The barangay "tanod" (guard) was at the barangay hall, trying to make calls, to no avail. Tis the time, when connections with the media came to use. My call to the local TV station reporter friend, roused him from his sleep. "There's a house burning very near to our residence- please inform the fire department and the police. In minutes, the TV crew was hurtling towards the fire scene.

Neighbors rushed to the scene to rouse the residents still asleep as the fire near their place rages supported by the wind that night. The power of fire, swallowing a whole structure is a nightmarish scene to remember. Residents fled their homes in their nightgowns, carrying whatever belongings they could muster to carry in that short notice. There were weeping people, too scared to talk about the possible spread of the fire towards their residences. It was a dreary night.

The first fire trucks started arriving and volunteer firement started to fight the fire, which is like a huge demon, angry at everyone, devouring the wood and masonry structure as it it was paper. But alas the volunteer fire personnel, and the local Fire Department was fighting for space to get to the fire scene.

With narrow streets, and uncoordinated entry and exit to the fire scene, just created chaos and water is not being delivered to it's target. When the water supply is gone from one fire truck, the next fire truck could not do anything as the access is completely blocked by the dozens of fire fighting appliances on the fire scene.

Where is coordination? Where is the fire marshall. Metro-Manila still has a lot to learn about fire fighting in cities and suburbs.