March 14, 2025
Humanity class on fire safety combines lecture with live simulation activity
By Joy Rojas
Fire Prevention Month had just started, and yet there were already 2,442 fire incidents reported by the Bureau of Fire Protection from January 1 to March 4, 2025.
One such was a blaze that broke out just before 2 am on February 12 at Purok 5 Kawal, Barangay 28, Maypajo, Caloocan City. A faulty electric fan was said to be the source of the fire, which got out of hand when three minors tried to put it out with a pillow.
Tzu Chi scholar Rainiel Manansala, a resident of the area, was asleep when a commotion from the neighbors roused him. The fire from the electric fan had spread and its flames reached the roof of his home. Manansala hurriedly woke his older brother up, and in his haste to save himself, only managed to bring his cellphone and a few documents with him.
“When we were out of the house, my brother and I just accepted that we lost everything,” says the second year student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines taking his Bachelor of Secondary Education, major in Social Studies. “We said, ‘They’re just material things. What’s important is we’re safe.’” Manansala, whose father was at work during the disaster, was relieved to learn about the safety of his mother, who lives a few houses away with her new partner.
Nearly a month after the fire, he’s is still dealing with the after-effects of the disaster. He and other residents who lost their homes live in modular tents in their barangay’s multi-purpose court. As grateful as he is to have a roof over his head, he is painfully reminded that the setup is temporary.
“For the first 10 days, they gave us food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. After that, they stopped our supplies and water. Then they stopped cleaning the public restroom and collecting the garbage,” he says. Figuring it was a way of easing out evacuees, Manansala says, “That’s what hurts. We didn’t ask for this to happen.”
As if he wasn’t traumatized enough, a Humanity class he attended on March 9 at Buddhist Tzu Chi Campus in Sta. Mesa, Manila, happened to be about fire prevention. “I had mixed emotions while listening to the talk,” admits Manansala, one of 233 scholars at the class. “But I was also thankful because of the new learnings I gained.”
Presented by Tzu Chi facilities maintenance supervisor and longtime Chinatown fire volunteer Lyndon Yu, the discussion ranged from identifying common causes of fire (cigarettes, unattended open flames from cooking) to providing tips on how to extinguish a blaze in the kitchen or home. Outside, scholars took turns putting out controlled fires using a fire extinguisher and a wet blanket. They also peeked into the Chinatown Volunteer ambulance, which resembled a mini emergency room.
Through Minette Sy Chan, a visiting volunteer from Tzu Chi California, scholars learned that fire is a great equalizer, a disaster that is as destructive and devastating to those in First-world countries.
“In California, wildfires happen a lot,” says Chan. “People think that it's such a rich, developed country. How can 10,000 homes be burning all at the same time? But it happens. It's definitely what they call acts of nature.”
Last February 16, Chan was among the volunteers who traveled from the San Francisco Bay Area to Los Angeles to extended compassion and relief to survivors of the LA wildfires. As part of the intake group, she sat with fire victims and shared Master Cheng Yen’s teachings before presenting them with a cash card.
“In one day, we were serving about 500 to 600 households. There is definitely grief because all their possessions are gone, and some of them are left with just the clothes on their back,” she recalls.
“But what I also noticed was that there's other people who have already gone into acceptance. And also appreciation. They said, ‘In this lowest point in my life, that's when I noticed that I have neighbors. I have this community. All these people who I've never known before in my life coming here just to help me, and I'm not alone.’ That is such a wonderful, powerful feeling.”
Perhaps that’s why Rainiel Manansala, currently in the lowest point of his life, decided to make the most of it. At the evacuation center, he helps distribute donated food to families, asks each of them how they’re doing, then guards the gate at night to prevent outsiders from entering.
“I have nothing to offer. But even if I lost everything from the fire, I wasn’t going to keep asking for help,” he says. “Help doesn’t just mean giving financial aid or material goods. It can mean volunteering too.”
Humanity classes on “Disaster and Emergency Preparedness” were also conducted in Tzu Chi’s various chapters. Forty-three Bicol scholars, 53 Iloilo scholars, 24 Palo scholars, 35 Pampanga scholars, and 32 Zamboanga scholars attended their respective classes.
Tzu Chi facilities maintenance supervisor and longtime Chinatown fire volunteer Lyndon Yu encourages scholars to participate in a Humanity class on “Disaster and Emergency Preparedness.”
Chinatown’s volunteer firefighters teach scholars how to operate a fire extinguisher. The trick is to remember TPASS: Twist the pin to break the safety seal. Pull out the safety seal. Aim the nozzle at the base of the fire. Squeeze the lever to release the extinguishing agent. Sweep the nozzle from side to side.
A scholar puts out controlled flames with a fire extinguisher.
To put out a fire from an LPG tank, wrap a large wet cloth around the tank to quell the flames then turn off the valve.
Scholars peer into Chinatown firemen’s ambulance, a fully equipped vehicle that could pass for a mini ER.
Fires are a common occurrence in Rainiel Manansala’s neighborhood, but the one last February 12 was the first time a blaze reached his home. “We were not prepared,” says Manansala, a Tzu Chi scholar from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines taking his Bachelor of Secondary Education major in Social Studies.
After the lecture and fire simulation activity, scholars gather for a group discussion moderated by a Tzu Chi volunteer.
A former Tzu Ching (Tzu Chi Youth), Minette Sy Chan continued to volunteer with Tzu Chi when she moved to the United States. Now part of Tzu Chi California, she participated in relief efforts for the victims of the LA wildfires last February.
For Tzu Chi scholar Rainiel Manansala, home for now is a modular tent set up in his barangay’s multi-purpose court. To help him get back on his feet, Tzu Chi provided him with sacks of rice and essentials that include his scholar uniform. (Photo courtesy of Rainiel Manansala)
A fire reduced Rainiel Manansala’s home to ashes. If there’s something he regrets not saving, it’s his academic awards. “The tokens of my hard work in school, events, and contests that I participated in, I lost all of them,” he says. (Photo courtesy of Rainiel Manansala)
At Tzu Chi California’s relief efforts for victims of the LA wildfires in February, Minette Sy Chan (right) was part of the intake group, whose task was to sit with fire victims and offer comforting words as well as messages of hope from Master Cheng Yen. (Photo courtesy of Minette Sy Chan)
Tzu Chi volunteer Molita Chua (center) presents Humanity class speaker Lyndon Yu (first from left) and Chinatown volunteer firefighters with special gifts after an engaging and informative presentation on disaster and emergency preparedness.