Chief Inspector Agapito Nacario, Valenzuela City fire chief, identified the fatalities as Herbert Vevita, 10; his siblings Henrietta, 8; Hennessy, 7; Marirold, 6; and Harold, 3.

The oldest of the siblings, Gerald, 12, was able to escape from the burning shanties, but suffered second-degree burns and fractured arms.

Nacario said the parents of the victims, vendors Harold Vevita Sr., 37, and his wife, Marites, were out of the house buying vegetables at the Divisoria market when the fire occurred.

Initial investigation showed that the fire started from a lighted candle at about 1:30 a.m. in the shanty of the Vevitas at Dulong Carnation, Valenzuela.

There was no electricity at that time.

"Nahirapan kaming patayin agad ang apoy dahil sa makikipot na daan sa lugar (We had a hard time putting out the fire because of the narrow paths in the area)," a responding firefighter said.

Even residents in the area failed to immediately call the fire station. They called at the fire station almost 30 minutes after the blaze had started, a resident said.

During the operation, Nacario said a barangay official informed him that children were trapped in a shanty, prompting him to immediately conduct a search operation

Sifting through the debris of the Vevita’s shanty, arson probers found the charrred bodies of the children. The one who survived was broguht to the Valenzuela General Hospital.

Probers said the shanty was locked from the outside, trapping to death the siblings. The oldest was able to force open the door.

Aside from the Vevita’s shanty, 96 other houses were destroyed, causing estimated R5-million property damage.

Mayor Sherwin Gatchalian implemented a contingency plan for the affected families numbering at least 100.

Nacario aslo said that he is contemplating to file criminal charges against the parents of the victims for negligence and violations of the Fire Code of the Philippines.