MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said that national identification cards ready for delivery in the City of Manila were destroyed due to the fire that engulfed the historical Manila Central Post Office from late Sunday, May 21, to early Monday.
“We also wish to clarify that PhilIDs for delivery of the PHLPost are sorted and stored at the PHLPost Central Mail Exchange Center (CMEC) in Pasay City and were unaffected by the fire,” the PSA stated on May 22.
As of writing, the specific number of national IDs that were burned is still unknown.
The agency has also assured that the national IDs that have been burned in the fire will be restored by the PSA with “no additional cost” for the registered person.
The Philippine Postal Corporation Postmaster Louis Carlos has stated that the letters and parcels bound for Manila and outside were totally burned. Court letters and national IDs are included.
“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,” BFP-NCR Director Chief Superintendent Nahum Tarroza stated.
While people expressed their worries about the historic building, “National ID” started trending on Twitter as netizens express their worry about never receiving their IDs.
According to the Bureau of Fire Protection – National Capital Region, the fire started at approximately 11:41 PM on Sunday. The fire was then declared under control at 7:22 AM, Monday.
Seven firefighters were injured from difficulty breathing and erosion. The estimated cost of the inflicted damage was P300 million, the BFP stated. – WhatALife!/Zain
Also read: How to verify Philippine National ID (PhilID) through PhilSys Check
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