Santo Niño De Pandacan Image Lost In Church Fire

The revered 400-year-old image of the Child Jesus was not saved in the 70-minute fire that gutted Santo Niño de Pandacan Parish in Manila Friday.

- Minka Klaudia S. Tiangco And Leslie Ann G. Aquino

Fr. Sanny de Claro, parish priest, made the announcement after celebrating mass at a tent outside the church Sunday morning.

De Claro said the fire, that reached third alarm damaged the church, including the pews, images of saints, and the entire convent where the Santo Niño de Pandacan was being kept.

Nang maganap ang sunog, ang imahen ng Mahal na Poong Santo Niño ay nasa chapel sa kumbento. Napakabilis ng pagkalat ng apoy na kahit ang mga naiwan dito sa ating parokya ay walang nailigtas maliban sa kanilang suot na damit (When the fire broke out, the image of the Venerated Santo Niño was at the chapel in the convent. The fire spread quickly, and even those who were staying in the parish were only able to save the clothes in their back), he said.

At around 10 a.m. Saturday, authorities found one of the image's three Tres Potencias buried under deep ash with half of it already melted, the parish priest said.

Later, they also found the globe and cross that the Santo Niño was holding, its andador, and its burnt clothes.