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A welder from the slippers factory that was gutted by a deadly blaze on Wed, May 13, is now under the protective custody of police.
According to the Northern Police District, which held a case conference on Fri, May 15, the welder turned himself over to authorities, saying he has been receiving death threats following the fire.
Workers who survived the blaze had said that the fire erupted after a welding equipment produced sparks and ignited chemicals stored nearby.
Seventy-two workers were killed in the incident.
Valenzuela police chief Supt. Roderick Armamento said based on the initial information they got from the welder, volatile materials like chemicals and powders that had just been delivered were usually placed near the roll-up door he had been working on.
“During our interview with the welder, he said he did welding tasks above the roll-up door. Naturally, the sparks from the welding rod would be all over the area. That means he was directly above the area where the materials were placed when they were delivered,” Armamento said.
Northern Police District deputy chief for operations Sr. Supt. Edgar Danao, meanwhile, said they see possible negligence on the part of Kentex Manufacturing Corp., which owns the two-storey factory building.
Initial probe results revealed that there were no sprinklers in the building and that the facility was overcrowded.
The factory’s windows were also boarded up with grills and wire mesh, which, a worker said, prevented those trapped inside from escaping.
But Atty. Renato Paraiso, legal counsel of Kentex Manufacturing Corp., insisted that they have been complying with fire safety regulations. —report from Bettina Magsaysay, ABS-CBN News
This article has been re-published with permission from ABS-CBNnews.com.
Photo: Dennis Datu, dzMM (Twitter)
