By Francis Allan L. Angelo
THE explosion in a makeshift firecracker factory in Arevalo, Iloilo City Sunday afternoon proves that underground pyrotechnics industry exists despite efforts of the City Hall to organize the sector.
Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) investigators said a cigarette butt caused the explosion in the house of Rodrigo Gallena at Brgy. Mohon, Arevalo past 5pm the other day.
The BFP learned that Gallena was smoking outside their house while in the middle of a birthday party. His house also serves as pyrotechnics warehouse and factory.
Gallena’s mother Sofia and his children Luther and Rodessa were charred to death after the explosion. Gallena succumbed to third-degree burns at the hospital.
Wounded in the blast were Allen Fernandez, Carmi Alana, Angelo Dominez, Teresa Dominez, and Cecilia Gabriel.
The blast also burned down six houses owned by Gallena’s neighbors.
The Arevalo police is looking at the angle that Gallena’s house was used as storage and factory of firecrackers by a manufacturer to avoid paying taxes and spending on the construction of a separate factory as required by law.
Republic Act 7183 (Pyrotechnics Law) requires firecrackers makers to put up their factories at least 300 meters away from the nearest residential unit and must be declared by the local government unit as a firecrackers zone.
The Iloilo City government has organized 300 firecracker manufacturers and 200 dealers and retailers under one cooperative so they can comply with legal requirements.
The Sto. Niño de Arevalo Multi-Purpose Cooperative aimed to assist manufacturers and dealers to put up a factory that follows safety standards.
No comments:
Post a Comment