The fire started early Sunday morning, May 16, 2021, at the Philippine General Hospital, located at Taft Avenue, Manila. 

Rappler reporter Camille Elemia was in PGH when a fire started before 1 a.m. on the third floor.

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The fire originated in an operating room on the 3rd floor. It was brought under control after about an hour.

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A total of 14 fire trucks responded to the incident. Several of them were able to secure the area and prevent the fire from spreading.

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No one was hurt in the fire, according to the Manila Public Information office. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the incident.

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Several babies were transferred to different hospitals due to the lack of space in the neonatal intensive care unit of the Sta. Ana Hospital.

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Since the fire had been extinguished, Del Rosario said that some of the patients were moved to other parts of the hospital while the others remained in their original areas. 

In a Twitter post, Leni Robredo asked for industrial fans to help remove the smoke from the building.

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Leni Robredo: Appealing to anyone with big, industrial fans who would be willing to lend them. PGH urgently needs them to dissipate the smoke that enveloped the hospital due to the fire.

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Spokesperson Harry Roque said that the people who responded to the emergency donations were very helpful in helping the hospital’s operations. He also urged the public to support the hospital’s official fundraising efforts.

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“We would like to ask the public to give generously and kind acts of kindness to those in need,” Roque said.

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PGH is one of the biggest COVID-19 referral hospitals in the country. 

The hospital's capacity has been under the moderate classification since May 14. Its utilization rate has also reached 90%.