The three major markets in Bacolod City need immediate repair as they are already old and considered fire hazards, City Fire Marshal, Chief Insp. Pamela Rojane Candido, declared yesterday.

Candido said that the City’s Fire Bureau, the Office of the Building Officer and the City Engineers Office met yesterday and formed a task force to conduct an intensified inspection of the Burgos, Libertad and Central markets.

The Task Force will also inspect all the satellite markets in the barangays of Bacolod to ensure that they follow the building code, Candido said.

The Task force was created after a fire incident triggered by an overheating 40-watt fluorescent ballast destroyed 12 stalls and damaged 16 others at the Bacolod City North Public Market at Burgos Street at about 12:55 a.m. Sunday. About P1.5 million in merchandise was destroyed, Candido said.

She said that in their previous inspections of the city’s three main markets, they had noted several violations. The pathways were too narrow and the fire hydrants were no longer visible because they were covered by the goods sold by the vendors, she said.

Stall occupants should also inform the market supervisors before undertaking any renovations, she said.

Councilor Caesar Distrito, chairman of the Sangguniang Panlungsod Market Committee, said they have a budget for the repairs the three major markets in Bacolod.

Distrito said that P7 million is needed to repair the damaged stalls at the Burgos market but they only have P3.5 million available, for it out of the P12 million budget of the city.

He said that P1.5 million has already been allotted for the repair of the central market, while P7 million is intended for the reconstruction of the Libertad market.*APN

back to top