It is now feared that more than 75 people lost their lives in a pre-dawn fire in a Manila hotel. Many of the victims were found asphyxiated in their bathrooms from a blaze which apparently started in a karaoke bar.
It has been alleged that some fire exits were blocked and the hotel has been warned before for violatiating building codes. All the victims were believed to be Filipinos, mostly participants at a weekend gathering organised by Christian evangelists. The hotel is located in a lower middle-class area far from the capital's tourist districts.Rescue officials said the fire in the five-storey Quezon City Manor House apparently began in a third-floor karaoke bar and restaurant at about 4 a.m. (9 p.m. Irish time yesterday), just as steady rain from a tropical depression began to ease.The flames did not spread very far but thick columns of smoke did.The cause of the blaze, which was put out two hours later, could not immediately be determined. Initial investigations showed a strong possibility of a short circuit, officials said.A total of 172 people had checked into the hotel, the officials said. At least 75 bodies were recovered, many from bathrooms where the victims were apparently dousing themselves with water, firemen said.Other victims were found in hallways and near exits. Only a few of the bodies bore burn injuries, firemen said.General Francisco Senot, director of the Bureau of Fire Protection, said his men found obstructions to some fire escapes.There were also complaints that some of the fire escapes were locked and the hotel lacked emergency lighting.Media reports also said the hotel had violated some building codes and the owners have been warned before.Rescue officials sawed off iron grills from windows to pull scores of people out of the hotel, they said. Seventeen people were injured and a pastor and his wife were missing.