Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Friday called for an emergency meeting of the National Security Council after a blast left 8 dead and 89 wounded in a shopping mall in the capital region of the country.

 

 

The explosion took place at around 1:30 PM local time (0530 GMT) in Glorietta, a classy shopping mall in the country's financial city of Makati, Metro Manila. The explosion ripped through the roof of the mall and damaged nearby shops. Debris from the blast were scattered on the streets.

 

Eight people have been confirmed dead while 89 others were wounded in the blast according to reports as of 6:30 local time (1030 GMT).

 

The president has ordered the police to "leave no stone unturned" in its investigation on the explosion.

 

"The President is deeply saddened by this incident and extends her sympathies to the families of the casualties. She has also ordered the PNP (Philippine National Police) to get to the bottom of things and to leave no stone unturned," Philippine Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said in a statement.

 

Bunye said the President also ordered the Department of Social Welfare and Development to extend assistance to the victims to mitigate their suffering.

 

Local media reported that Gloria herself will go to Makati City Friday evening to monitor progress in the police investigation into the explosion.

 

 

The blast in the Glorietta 2 ground level was probably caused by a bomb, Philippine ABS-CBN TV citing PNP chief Avelino Razon reported.

 

"This was a bomb. But beyond that we can't say anything else yet because we are still investigating. What I can say is it was not [liquefied petroleum gas] that caused this," Razon told reporters.

 

Earlier, Geary Barias, deputy chief of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) said the blast appeared to be "caused by an LPG (liquefied petroleum gas)."

 

Initial information gathered by investigators indicated that the explosion occurred at the Luk Yuen restaurant at the ground floor of the Glorieta mall, he said.

 

When asked if the explosion is linked to terror, Barias said, "It's hard to speculate, we are still investigating. It appears that it was caused by an LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) but we are looking if there are other explosives involved."

 

NCRPO has declared a red alert status in Metro Manila following the blast. Barias said the blast can be a possible act of terrorism.

 

"We will send policemen to other malls to restore order especially here in Makati and to prevent any untoward incident," Barias told reporters.

 

"The investigation is ongoing and we would have additional security in the area and other parts of Metro Manila," he added.

 

 

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2007)