(Eagle News) — The fire that hit the NCCC mall on December 23 in Davao and resulted in the deaths of 38 people was due to a short circuit.
This is according to Inter-agency Anti-Arson Task Force spokesperson Superintendent Jerry Candido, who received a report of the arson laboratory on the incident on Wednesday night.
According to Candido, the faulty electrical wiring was in the “ceiling” located between the furniture and fabric sections.”
He said these were areas that were “highly combustible.”
Candido also noted that the NCCC mall committed safety violations.
For instance, he said that the fire sprinkler system was in manual mode, which meant it would work only if there was human intervention.
He noted that the mall exits were not “fire doors” but were “ordinary” swing doors.
Thirty seven of the 38 who died in the fire were call center agents of Research Now SSI, located on the fourth floor of the mall.
One was a mall guard who tried to save lives.
One person, call center agent Alexandra Moreno, remains missing.
The Philippine Economic Zone Authority has issued suspension orders against NCCC mall and Research Now SSI in connection with the incident.