A 28-year-old mother and her three sons — aged one, three, and six — died in a fire that broke out in Barangay San Vicente, Sta. Maria, Bulacan on the morning of Thursday, May 15. According to a neighbor of the victims, she saw the mother step out of the house before the incident happened.

“There were two people shouting, ‘Fire! Fire!’ When I turned around, there was already smoke. Everyone rushed to help break the gate of the house. We worked together to get water. I grabbed a blanket for the child. But we couldn’t find the child because it was too dark inside,” the neighbor recounted.

The father was reportedly not at home at the time, as he was working in Batangas. The house door was also locked, prompting the neighbors to break the lock to get inside. One of the responders said the first thing they saw was the lifeless body of the one-year-old boy lying on the bed. They later found his two brothers in the bathroom.

According to Barangay Captain Potensyano Lorenzo of San Vicente, the mother went to their office in the early morning before the fire to file a police blotter regarding her marital problems.

“She filed a blotter that night, and we were supposed to summon them both for a dialogue. But it didn’t happen, because the next day, we were met with this tragedy,” Lorenzo said, referring to the couple’s personal issues.

ABS-CBN News attempted to get a statement from the father, but he requested not to give any comments at the moment.

Meanwhile, a 17-year-old girl with a disability (PWD) also perished in a separate fire that occurred at around 7:30 PM on the same day in Barangay Iba Oeste, Calumpit.

According to the report, the victim was unable to escape due to her physical condition when the fire engulfed their house. She was overcome by the smoke and flames. The fire was extinguished at around 8:00 PM by firefighters who are still investigating the cause of the blaze. The incident came to light when someone shouted that there was a fire, prompting neighbors to rush out and help put out the flames before firefighters arrived.

Before passing away, one of the two older children managed to tell rescuers that their mother had poured paint thinner on them and then set them on fire.

This information was confirmed by Police Lieutenant Colonel Voltaire Rivera, Chief of the Sta. Maria Police Station in Bulacan, Philippines. He stated that the child recounted the incident to the individuals who brought him to the hospital before he died.

The mother, identified as Joyce, allegedly doused her three sons — aged 1, 3, and 6 — with paint thinner and set them on fire before also setting herself on fire. The youngest child died at the scene, while the other two were brought to the hospital but did not survive. The mother died on May 15 at the East Avenue Medical Center.

According to the police, the motive may have been related to marital issues between Joyce and her husband, a police sergeant stationed in Batangas. Prior to the incident, Joyce had gone to the barangay office to report problems in their marriage.

“I was the one who carried the second child. I held him inside. He was still crying because I could still hear his heartbeat. But I couldn’t do anything,” one responder said emotionally. The mother and two remaining children were brought to the hospital, but all were later declared dead.

In the initial investigation by the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), matches and two bottles of paint thinner were found inside the house.

“In our initial investigation, our findings show that the child was the one burned first. The bed just caught fire afterward. There’s a strong probability that there was an open flame involved. We saw that the burning of the house seemed secondary. The people were clearly the primary targets,” said Alfredo Hernandez, Chief Fire Investigator of the Santa Maria BFP.

Heartbreaking to the Core: Did the Older Boy Use His Final Breaths to Tell Police the Truth? Little Angels—What Did You Endure?

Bulacan, Philippines — In a tragedy that has shaken an entire community and left law enforcement in tears, three young children were found lifeless in the smoldering ruins of a burned-down home. But what has haunted rescuers and the public alike is not just the flames—but the chilling final words allegedly spoken by the oldest child before his death.

On the night of the fire, chaos erupted in a quiet barangay in Bulacan. Neighbors screamed. Sirens pierced the darkness. And inside the burning home, three siblings—ages 4, 6, and 9—were trapped, with no way out.

According to a responding officer, one of the children, the oldest boy, was still barely conscious when they reached him. Smoke-blackened and barely breathing, he reportedly whispered something that has stunned investigators:

“He didn’t save us… he closed the door.”

Those words, barely audible and full of pain, were what he allegedly used the final moments of his life to say. Who was he talking about? And why?

A Cry for Justice

The mother of the children is currently under questioning, but it is her husband—the children’s stepfather—who is now under the harshest spotlight. Witnesses say he was seen escaping the home unharmed, and not once did he attempt to re-enter to rescue the children. Worse, there are allegations that he may have deliberately locked the door from the outside.

Residents who once thought the family lived peacefully are now revealing past signs of tension: frequent arguments, children crying late at night, and bruises explained away too quickly.

“We thought they were just noisy kids,” one neighbor said.
“Now we realize—they were probably calling for help.”

The House of Ashes Tells a Story

Investigators are combing through what’s left of the house for evidence. The back door was locked. The front door was jammed. And the windows had metal grills. Firefighters say the children likely suffocated before the flames ever reached them.

A small pile of toys and a charred school backpack were found in what used to be their bedroom. A melted plastic doll. A blackened shoe. A piece of paper with childlike handwriting still visible beneath the soot.

“They didn’t stand a chance,” said one firefighter, visibly shaken.
“Who could do this to children?”

Not an Accident?

Authorities are now considering the possibility of arson or foul play. The timing, the locked doors, and the stepfather’s calm behavior after the fire have all raised serious concerns.

Online, the public has erupted with outrage. Hashtags like #JusticeForTheThree, #BulacanAngels, and #WhoLockedTheDoor are trending, with thousands demanding a full investigation.

Social workers are stepping in, reviewing the family’s past history for signs of domestic abuse or neglect that might have gone unnoticed.

A Final Whisper That Won’t Be Forgotten

The alleged final words of the older boy have become a rallying cry for justice. Though no charges have yet been filed, public pressure is mounting. Candlelight vigils have been held outside the charred remains of the house, with photos of the children displayed beside toys and flowers. Strangers have wept for them. Others have prayed.

“He used his last breath to speak truth,” said one woman at the vigil.
“Now it’s our job to listen.”

The nation watches and waits — for answers, for accountability, and for justice for the three little angels who never got to grow up.