Declared a "Cultural Property" of the nation, the Juan Arellano-designed building is an icon and important landmark in the capital.
“Totally burned po lahat ang ating structure natin. Hundred percent ito...Talagang nakakalungkot dahil may kalumaan ito. Isa ito sa kasaysayan natin, itong building. Pero talagang ‘di namin kinaya. Kailangan talaga ito ma-preserve na ‘yung structure na lang niya,” he said.
[Translation: The structure is totally burned. This is 100%. This is trully saddening because the building is old. It is part of our history. But we really couldn't handle it. The structure needs to be preserved.]
The Manila Fire Station said the fire started in the post office’s basement past 11 p.m. Sunday. It was placed on the highest fire alarm level, which is general alarm, at 5:54 a.m. Monday. The fire was declared under control past 7 a.m. Firefighters still continue to extinguish the fire.
An investigation was underway to determine the cause of the fire and what was damaged, officials said, adding seven people, mostly firefighters, sustained minor injuries or were overwhelmed by thick smoke.
The Manila Central Post Office was one of the capital’s busiest office buildings but was closed when the fire started. The building was the country’s main mail-sorting and distribution hub and was the central office for the Philippine Postal Corporation.
Postal service in the Philippines began during the Spanish colonial period with horse-riding mail couriers.
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