How can a building that’s located in a place that’s under Signal No. 1 sustain this damage?
The police, as well as the UP Town Center’s developer, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), blamed the partial ceiling collapse on the strong winds unleashed by Typhoon Yolanda.
The UP Town Center is located at the corner of Katipunan and C.P. Garcia Avenues in Diliman, Quezon City. It’s on the area that was formerly occupied by UP Integrated School.
It must be pointed out that Typhoon Yolanda battered the Visayas region when it hit the country. When a section of the UP Town Center’s ceiling collapsed on the evening of November 8, Metro Manila’s storm warning had, in fact, already been downgraded to Signal No. 1.
Nevertheless, in a statement released on Saturday, Nov 9, ALI said: “The affected area of UP Town Center, where a portion of an exterior ceiling fell, has been cleared and secured. The incident happened at the mall’s open ‘breezeway’ at 1120 pm (on November 8), as strong winds brought about by Typhoon Yolanda passed through the area.”
“The firm said the three injured persons were treated immediately, brought to the hospital for further checkup and were later discharged by the doctors,” reports Julie M. Aurelio in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
