The build-up of methane gas in a confined space below the redesigned delivery bay of Glorietta 2 Mall, ignited by a malfunctioning submersible pump, initiated the blast that triggered a bigger explosion of a diesel fuel tank that caused the death of 11 people and the injury of many others.
Thus says the final report released last Thursday by a multi-agency investigating task force led by the PNP.
This puts an end to the theory pushed by Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), the owners of the Makati mall, that a bomb caused the explosion last October 19. The evidences were substantial, and the body language of ALI was telling.
Physical evidences were hard to refute, the most obvious of which were the bodies of the victims themselves. Whereas bombing victims have mangled and burned bodies, the casualties of the Glorietta blast had intact bodies. Trauma was the cause of their death.
While tearing effects and soot would have characterized a bombing scene, the basement of Glorietta 2 had a concave slab soffit caused by a powerful explosion, consistent with the methane-diesel blast theory. Powder burns, indicative signs of a bomb blast, were non-existent on the walls and columns of the basement and on the skin of the victims.
There was no crater either. A bomb blast of that magnitude would have created a not so small crater, even in concrete. Bomb fragments were also absent.
Scientific evidences sustained the physical proofs. Water and air samples from the basement contained substantial amounts of methane gas and diesel fumes. The confined space between two floor slabs of the redesigned delivery bay, as calculated by investigators, could contain a critical volume of compressed methane gas to set off an explosion.
Moreover, the eyewitness accounts further bolstered the findings of the task force. Mall maintenance personnel, tenants and customers complained of offensive-smelling gas days before the blast. The sump pits smelled of obnoxious gases and the water was quite deep, yet their submersible pump was not functioning. Maintenance personnel observed that the basement had no proper ventilation, yet their supervisors did not do anything about the exhaust systems.
Prior to the release of the final report, Australian and Israeli investigators have already corroborated the initial findings of the task force.
On October 19 of last year, the survivors heard two successive explosions, within 45 to 60 seconds of each other. The first caused by methane, the second by diesel fuel.
We empathize with ALI on its stubborn insistence on the bomb theory. This tragic incident had tarnished its reputation as one of the country’s top property developers and mall operators. It must do what it has to do to overturn the findings of the task force, and the prevailing public perception, that it had caused the death of 11 customers due to negligence.
It is just ironic that while ALI continues to insist on its idea, the relatives of the victims consider the findings of the task force credible, and were satisfied with the flow of the investigations.
So while ALI wants to look adamant by insisting on its ‘due diligence and care’ in the maintenance of its facilities, it is already indirectly admitting its guilt by cozying up with the victims and their family.
ALI’s very generous offer of PHP1 million cash, a house and lot worth PHP4 million and educational plans for the relatives of each casualty, allegedly in exchange for signing waivers of not filing complaints against it, smack of bribery.
Maybe ALI was all along anticipating an unfavorable finding, and a forthcoming class suit to boot.
Thus says the final report released last Thursday by a multi-agency investigating task force led by the PNP.
This puts an end to the theory pushed by Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), the owners of the Makati mall, that a bomb caused the explosion last October 19. The evidences were substantial, and the body language of ALI was telling.
Physical evidences were hard to refute, the most obvious of which were the bodies of the victims themselves. Whereas bombing victims have mangled and burned bodies, the casualties of the Glorietta blast had intact bodies. Trauma was the cause of their death.
While tearing effects and soot would have characterized a bombing scene, the basement of Glorietta 2 had a concave slab soffit caused by a powerful explosion, consistent with the methane-diesel blast theory. Powder burns, indicative signs of a bomb blast, were non-existent on the walls and columns of the basement and on the skin of the victims.
There was no crater either. A bomb blast of that magnitude would have created a not so small crater, even in concrete. Bomb fragments were also absent.
Scientific evidences sustained the physical proofs. Water and air samples from the basement contained substantial amounts of methane gas and diesel fumes. The confined space between two floor slabs of the redesigned delivery bay, as calculated by investigators, could contain a critical volume of compressed methane gas to set off an explosion.
Moreover, the eyewitness accounts further bolstered the findings of the task force. Mall maintenance personnel, tenants and customers complained of offensive-smelling gas days before the blast. The sump pits smelled of obnoxious gases and the water was quite deep, yet their submersible pump was not functioning. Maintenance personnel observed that the basement had no proper ventilation, yet their supervisors did not do anything about the exhaust systems.
Prior to the release of the final report, Australian and Israeli investigators have already corroborated the initial findings of the task force.
On October 19 of last year, the survivors heard two successive explosions, within 45 to 60 seconds of each other. The first caused by methane, the second by diesel fuel.
We empathize with ALI on its stubborn insistence on the bomb theory. This tragic incident had tarnished its reputation as one of the country’s top property developers and mall operators. It must do what it has to do to overturn the findings of the task force, and the prevailing public perception, that it had caused the death of 11 customers due to negligence.
It is just ironic that while ALI continues to insist on its idea, the relatives of the victims consider the findings of the task force credible, and were satisfied with the flow of the investigations.
So while ALI wants to look adamant by insisting on its ‘due diligence and care’ in the maintenance of its facilities, it is already indirectly admitting its guilt by cozying up with the victims and their family.
ALI’s very generous offer of PHP1 million cash, a house and lot worth PHP4 million and educational plans for the relatives of each casualty, allegedly in exchange for signing waivers of not filing complaints against it, smack of bribery.
Maybe ALI was all along anticipating an unfavorable finding, and a forthcoming class suit to boot.
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