The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) in Davao City has recorded a decrease in fire incidents from January to August this year compared to the same period in 2024.
BFP FSINSP Russel Jake E. Marañon, Chief of the Public Information Unit of the Davao City Fire District (DCFD), said during the Madayaw morning radio program on Davao City Disaster Radio that a total of 462 fire incidents were recorded from January to August this year — lower than the 600 cases recorded in the same period in 2024.
In 2024, these incidents resulted in six deaths and 12 injuries, while this year, there were five deaths and 33 injuries recorded.
Despite the decline, Marañon warned Dabawenyos not to be complacent, and should double check electrical wiring in their households, as well as old and new Christmas lights they have planned to install to prevent fire incidents during the Yuletide season.
He cited that majority of the fire incidents in Davao City were caused by electrical ignition or faulty wiring, short circuits, or other electrical problems that trigger sparks or overheating.
He said there were 114 cases this year blamed on electrical ignition through arcing alone.
“By electrical ignition, this is through overheated appliances. Another kind is arcing, which happens when there are gaps between wires that cause arcs which can cause overheating of nearby materials. Nagkadugay mag-init, magbaga mag cause og kayo..ang nakapalibot nga plastic, rubber, kaunon sa kainit (it causes heat, cause fires, and it burns the surrounding, plastic, rubber or any material),” he said.
Marañon said that the majority of households do not regularly check wirings, and are only concerned about the power connections, and not its maintenance.
“Majority of us, wala sa atong kultura ang mag-check og wirings, basta makakita lang tag saksakan diha, unya muandar. Wala ta kabalo nga atong connection naa na’y damage. Gina-awhag gyud nato ang atong katawhan to have regular check-up (Majority of us, it is not part of our culture to check the wirings, [we are contented] as long as we see an outlet and it works. We did not know that our connections were already damaged. We encourage our households to have regular check-ups),” he said, adding that inspections should be done by certified electricians.
Marañon added that as the city is transitioning to the Christmas season, with many people already interested or have been preparing to decorate their homes, it is essential to double-check christmas lights, whether newly bought or recycled from last year.
“Karon September manggawas napud ning mga tinaguan nga Christmas light, we are encouraging everyone nga dapat i-check gyud nila bag-o iinstal para malikayan nato ang sunog. Kay mostly taas kaayo ang datos sa sunog aning electrical dapat sayod nata nga dapat mag double check even sa kaning paliton nato nga Christmas lights, didto gyud ta mangita sa certified, and bisan nakakita nata’g ICC mark dapat i-check gihapon nato (This September, many of our kept Christmas lights will surface. We are encouraging everyone to check the [lights] before installing them to prevent fire incidents. Because we have high data on electrical-related fire incidents and we need to double-check even the newly-bought ones. We should only buy the certified ones but even if there is an ICC mark– we should still check them),” Marañon said.
He said that some previously used Christmas lights might have been torn and worn out due to exposure to sun and rain, among others.
“We should check these to avoid incidents,” he added. CIO
