The fire engulfed 80 houses, eight dead.

The fire, which began around 0500 hours at the local time of Monday, also destroyed 80 homes.

It started on the second floor of a house in a crowded settlement within the vast campus of the Philippines University, Quezon City.

The cause of the fire is still unknown.

High fire officer Greg Bichayda told the AFP news agency that it took nearly two hours to extinguish the flames, the Rtv21.tv broadcast.

The fire spread quickly”, Bichayda said, adding that the victims were unable to leave their homes.

He said six of those who died were children, but no other details of their age were published.

The house consists of light materials. When the fire broke out, people were shocked”, Bichayda said.

The Philippines is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, and its capital has a large number of inhabitants per square mile.

Metro Manila, the region that includes capital and other cities, including Quezon, has a population of about 13 million.

Thousands of people live in crowded communities where fires are common.