More than 20,000 people were left homeless after a fire swept through a huge slum in the Philippine capital of Manila.
No deaths or injuries were reported, but the fire that started last night reduced to ash more than 2,500 makeshift homes on a man-made island - part of a closed state-run shipyard complex.
Investigators said a gas lamp or candle could have caused the fire that lasted seven hours until it was put out with help from coast guard and naval boats.
The slum colony, known as a stronghold of deposed and detained President Joseph Estrada, is a maze of narrow alleys and wooden bridges jutting out from Manila bay.
Residents, many of them working as stevedores, were seen running away from their burning shacks, clutching a few belongings, radio reports said. Many were brought to a nearby gymnasium, abandoned warehouses and open lots in the port area as city officials pondered how to resettle them.
Almost half of the slum was destroyed in a fire two years ago, and two smaller fires caused damage last year.