BRIEFS: Public safety

Colón fire leaves 84 homeless

LA PRENSA

fire damages building1075982

A fire early Sunday morning in Colón damaged 17 residences and left 84 people homeless.

The fire broke out in a building at Calle 9 and Avenida Central that is owned by the Ministerio de Vivienda (Mivi).

Cándido Pacheco, the director of Mivi for the province of Colón, said that crews began working yesterday on stabilizing the building, which was heavily damaged.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

There were no reported injuries, and firefighters were able to bring the blaze under control quickly after arriving on the scene.

Mivi has not announced where it plans to house the people displaced by the fire, or how long it will take to repair the damage.