By Romeo Braceros Jr.

Authorities said a fire that started at midnight on Friday in a beachfront slum neighborhood of Tagbilaran City, Bohol killed a family of three, including a nine-year-old child, and forced the relocation of an estimated 73 families.

The fire that lasted for two hours and thirty minutes in Barangay Poblacion II, close to the Tagbilaran City Port, is estimated to have destroyed 73 homes and harmed 300 people, according to Gerald Lavadia, chief of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO).

According to Lavadia, the proximity of the nearby light material houses contributed to the fire's rapid spread.

According to emergency personnel, three charred remains were discovered in one of the destroyed homes.

Remedios Arocha Baluca, 50, Edgar Manzano, 50, and their daughter Meyer Manzano, nine, were killed in the fire, according to Ken Requeron, a government worker among those impacted.

Anthony Damalerio, director of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Office, claimed that the fire originated on the Manzano home's first floor and swiftly spread to nearby homes.

Authorities reported that several other people who were also confined to their homes could flee by diving into Tagbilaran City Bay.

According to FO3 Irven Bongalos of the Tagbilaran City Fire Station, the fire began just after midnight. 

At 3:35 a.m., they were able to declare the fire extinguished.

According to him, when the fire reached the second alarm, the municipalities of Panglao, Dauis, Baclayon, Corella, and Cortes also sent personnel and equipment to the scene.

The CDRRMO, BQ, and Alturas fire vehicles contributed to the fire.

The Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School and the Poblacion II gymnasium were designated evacuation centers by the CDRRMO.

The mayor of Tagbilaran City, Jane Yap, visited the fire scene and monitored the rescue and evacuation operations.