5 dead, including 4 minors, in Navotas fire

MANILA -- Five people, including four minors, died in a fire that broke out in Barangay San Roque, Navotas, on Saturday morning, according to the Navotas Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).

The BFP reported that the blaze started at 7:02 a.m. in a small house and was declared out by 7:53 a.m.

"Mabilis naapula kasi maliit lang naman yung bahay pero nasunog yung kalahati ng bahay kasi ang structure niya kasi ay parang 3 storeys siya tapos 10 meter lang...yung kalahati bato kalahati ay parang gawa sa kahoy," said chief of Navotas BFP Supt. Ronaldo Sanchez.

Initial findings, based on witness accounts and a survivor's testimony, point to an unattended electric fan on the second floor as the likely cause of the fire. 

The second floor, made mostly of wood, is where the flames are believed to have started.

"After ng firefighting inakyat agad ng mga bumbero nakita nga nila yung isang kwarto dun sinasabi na nakita nila dun yung limang biktima na unconscious," Sanchez said.

Authorities confirmed asphyxia due to smoke inhalation as the cause of death.

No neighboring houses were affected by the incident.