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By Ruben D. Manahan 4th, Reporter
It was in the book of a young boy
to finish school, apparently at all costs. Francisco Leodones, 13,
paid for it with his life.
Francisco died in a fire as he
tried to recover his schoolbag, the only thing that apparently he
had thought to be most worthy of saving. He was a student of Gen.
Emilio Aguinaldo Integrated School.
The fire destroyed his family’s
two-story house in Punta in Sta. Ana, Manila, Friday dawn.
Rodelio Nelvis, Senior Fire
Officer 2 of the Bureau of Fire Protection, said the fire broke out
around 2:55 a.m. at the kitchen. The house belonged to the boy’s
grandfather, Francisco Sr.
Firemen identified a charred body
as that of Francisco an hour after they put out the blaze. Earlier,
they succeeded in preventing the fire from eating up the school
where Francisco went.
The firemen said the fire
destroyed around P1 million in property.
Manuel Jutic, a barangay tanod,
said residents had noticed smoke coming out from the second floor of
the Leodones’ residence. He immediately sought help.
Witnesses said a family member
had wakened Francisco up. The boy ran outside but remembered that
his schoolbag was still inside the burning house. He went back. That
was the last time he was seen alive.
Police are investigating probable
cause of the fire.
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