Firefighters douse a fire at the Post Office building in Manila on May 22, 2023. A huge fire destroyed a historic post office in the Philippine capital Manila, officials said Monday. More than 80 fire trucks were sent to the decades-old landmark after the blaze broke out late Sunday, the Bureau of Fire Protection said. (Photo by AFP)

มะนิลาระทึก “ไฟไหม้” – Thick, black smoke billowed hundreds of metres into the sky as flames gutted the neo-classical Manila Central Post Office that overlooks the Pasig River. It took firefighters more than seven hours to get the inferno under control. (Photo by AFP)

มะนิลาระทึก “ไฟไหม้” – It took firefighters more than seven hours to get the inferno under control. “The whole building has burned down from the basement all the way to the fifth floor,” Postmaster General Luis Carlos told DZBB radio. The cause of the blaze was being investigated, he said. (Photo by AFP)

Originally built in 1926, the post office was once considered the “grandest building” in Manila, according to its website. It was destroyed in World War II as US forces recaptured the capital from Japanese occupation forces, and rebuilt in 1946. (Photo by AFP)