Facebook (FB) pages are circulating a clip of a multi-storey building in Cebu City that caught fire in 2023, passing it off as new amid the extreme summer heat.
On April 16, an FB page posted a 39-second time lapse showing a fire starting at the top of a building and gradually spreading to the lower floors.
The caption read:
“SUNOG sa CEBU CITY Sumiklab (FIRE in CEBU CITY breaks out)!”
Another FB page posted the same video on the same day with the text:
“SUNOG SA (FIRE IN) CUBAO MANHATTAN”
These posts are misleading. The clip was taken in 2023 when a fire broke out at a multi-storey condominium being constructed in Cebu City.
The official FB page of SunStar Cebu uploaded a copy of the video taken on April 14, 2023. It shows the then-under construction Grand Residences condominium in Barangay Kasambagan, Cebu City.
According to reports, the fire was believed to have been caused by welding rod sparks igniting combustible materials. The fire lasted nine hours, leaving P4 billion in damages.
One of the posts carried a link that led netizens to an e-commerce site.
The video resurfaced with misleading context two days after the second anniversary of the fire incident. Several fires ravaged Cebu City areas weeks before the footage recirculated.
Regional offices of the Bureau of Fire Protection have warned against a possible increase in fire incidents because of fluctuating energy demands due to the extreme summer heat.
Earlier this month, VERA Files debunked a false post that used an old video of a fire incident in Cubao, passing it off as new.
The post by the FB page Boom Media – Talisay (created on April 2, 2025) garnered 210 reactions, 45 comments, 125 shares and 104,000 views. Another post by the FB page Eyegasm Manila (created on June 19, 2019 as Alexa Store) garnered 26 reactions, 16 comments, 47 shares and 40,000 views.
