37 Dead in Philippine Mall Blaze

Thirty seven people were believed killed in a fire that engulfed a shopping mall in the southern Philippine city of Davao, local authorities said on Sunday. A bureau of fire protection commander at the scene said the chances of the 37 surviving were “zero”, Paolo Duterte, Davao’s vice mayor, who is also the president’s son, wrote in a Facebook post, AFP reported. The blaze started at the four-storey NCCC Mall on Saturday morning and people were trapped inside, including at a call center on the top floor, said Ralph Canoy, a police officer in the district. Canoy said the fire was still raging before dawn on Sunday morning, nearly 24 hours later. “The fire started on the third floor, which houses products like fabrics, wooden furniture and plastic ware, so the fire quickly spread and it’s taking a long time to put out,” he said. He said investigators believed some of those likely killed had been trapped in the call center, which operated 24 hours a day.