MANILA: The Russian Embassy in the Philippine capital has been severely damaged after a blaze raged through its premises, authorities said on Saturday.
The fire began on the second floor of the building on Acacia Street in Makati City in metropolitan Manila on Friday evening.
Eighteen fire trucks scrambled for hours to put out the flames in the 1,000-square-meter area in the upscale Dasmarinas village, where embassies and diplomatic residences are located.
The crisis center of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said no one was injured and the mission’s employees and their families were evacuated, as firefighters quickly arrived at the scene.
The fire was extinguished on Saturday morning.
Makati City fire chief Col. Anthony Arroyo told Arab News the second floor of the embassy building “is totally damaged” and said they “would relocate for now.”
Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the hours-long blaze but need Russia’s approval to enter the premises.
“It’s a territory of Russia,” Arroyo said. “As per protocol, we cannot just conduct an investigation inside and ask eyewitnesses to get their testimony or their statement.”
He added that, at this stage, there were no indications of an arson attack. The Bureau of Fire Protection has estimated the losses at over 101 million pesos ($2 million).
The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said Russian officials are now trying to secure the mission’s documents.
“The Russian Embassy is taking measures to ensure the integrity and security of the chancery premises and the properties inside, as it should, taking special care that diplomatic correspondence is protected,” it said in a statement, adding that Philippine authorities would extend their support in investigating the incident in accordance with the relevant principles of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
The convention states that premises of the mission are inviolable and agents of the receiving state may not enter them except with the consent of the head of the mission.
