President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. personally welcomed a Filipino migrant worker hailed as a hero for saving a three-month-old baby during a deadly high-rise fire in Hong Kong last month, as she returned home Tuesday after weeks of hospital treatment.
Rhodora Alcaraz Tuñacao, who had arrived in Hong Kong just one day before the Nov. 26 blaze erupted in the Wang Fuk Court residential building in Tai Po, shielded the infant with a wet blanket and her own body amid thick smoke and flames. Firefighters rescued them hours later.
Marcos met Tuñacao at Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s Terminal 3, where he was inaugurating new facilities including a transit tours and medical tourism lounge. He praised her bravery in a speech, calling overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) the nation’s “new heroes.”
“Our OFWs continue to bring honor to our country,” Marcos said. “Despite the danger she faced, she chose to save the baby she was caring for. This shows the natural compassion of Filipinos for others.”
He added that Tuñacao’s actions reflect the sacrifices of millions of OFWs who endure hardship abroad to support their families, pledging improved government services for them.
The fire, one of Hong Kong’s deadliest in decades, killed more than 150 people, including several migrant domestic workers, and injured dozens. Tuñacao was initially treated in intensive care for smoke inhalation and other injuries but stabilized and received support from Philippine officials in Hong Kong.
Upon arrival, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration assisted Tuñacao and her siblings in traveling to their home province of Laguna.
Tuñacao’s story has drawn widespread praise in the Philippines, highlighting the risks faced by the country’s millions of overseas workers, many of whom are domestic helpers in Hong Kong.
