SunStar.com.ph, Nov. 29, 2005
CEBU CITY -- She was warned against saving her belongings that were being burned in a fire, but a 60-year-old woman took the risk. She died inside her store at the Badian Public Market Monday dawn.
Ten stalls of the old building were razed.
Victoria Silvano was at home when the fire broke out before 3 a.m., but rushed to the market when she heard about the blaze.
Inspector Rodrigo Orbigozo of the Badian Police Station estimated the damage at P1.5 million, including the stocks.
Victoria’s brother, Dubdub Barangay Councilor Juan Silvano, told Sun.Star Cebu that a nephew accompanied Victoria to the scene and that he warned her to keep away.
At the time, the flames have not yet spread to her store, but were already devouring the stall beside hers.
Juan said she assured her nephew, but later sneaked away to enter her store. He believes Victoria tried to escape through the backdoor but suffocated because of the smoke.
She was found in the rest room with a rosary in her right hand, melted necklaces in her left and a bundle of bills at her feet.
Juan said they have two siblings based in Hawaii who regularly sent her money.
“I feel very sad for my sister’s death. She wanted to save her store but she lost her life instead,” he said in Cebuano.
Badian, about 97 kilometers southwest of Cebu City, has no firefighters. The town police had to take care of putting out the blaze.
Badian will get financial assistance from Capitol so it can rebuild the market.
Governor Gwendolyn Garcia visited the town Monday and lauded the police for taking on the firefighting duty.
She ordered the social welfare office to give her a list of the fire victims because Capitol will also give them assistance.
No other fatality was reported except Silvano.
Her brother Juan found a box that would have contained Victoria’s cash. He admitted that his sister had a sizeable amount, since she maintained three stalls and had been occupying them for about 30 years.
She had no children to look after and that the money she earned was all hers. Juan said his sister was fond of keeping jewelry.
Although initial reports stated that the fire began at the barbershop, a witness came to the police station Monday afternoon to shed light on the investigation.
Pedro Virtuosio said that as he passed by one of the stores, he saw some people delivering seven sacks of charcoal.
The sacks had just come from one of the mountain barangays. He noticed one of the sacks was emitting smoke.
Virtuosio said he warned them about it and that those hauling the sack poured water over it before storing it inside the bodega. This happened at 1 p.m. the day before.
According to Orbigozo, the fire spread quickly because the building, which was built during the Second World War, was made of light materials.
He added that had they known Victoria had gone inside her store, they would have helped her out, especially since trucks from nearby towns had begun to arrive.
Orbigozo added that they were able to respond quickly, but the fire truck ran out of water, which was why they were unable to save the other establishments.
