15 killed in Manila house fire

Fifteen people, including a three-year-old child, were killed Thursday when a fire ripped through a house used as a clothing factory in the Philippines, officials said.

The blaze broke out at around 5:00 am (2100 GMT) in the two-storey building in Manila, local fire marshal Senior Superintendent Aristotle Banaga told a news conference.

Eighteen people were inside the suburban house at the time of the inferno, local mayor Joy Belmonte said.

Three people escaped, but the rest died, including the owner of the house and business.

Video footage of the fire posted on social media and verified by AFP showed flames engulfing the building made of wood and concrete in a residential neighbourhood.

The cause of the blaze was still under investigation, Banaga said.

The building had a business permit for trading in shoes and bags, but instead was being used to make and print T-shirts, officials said. It had only three declared employees.

“We saw many legal violations here,” Belmonte said.

“That became the reason why there is this kind of tragic incident in our city.”