MANILA, Philippines – The University of the Philippines (UP) Shopping Center in Diliman, regarded by many students and alumni as a university “institution,” was left gutted after a fire on Thursday, March 8.

Firefighters said the fire started at 7 am. By 8:53 am, the blaze had been put out, but only after the building’s contents – students’ theses, popular  tapsilog  meals, and university pride shirts, among others – had already been blackened or reduced to ashes.

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) estimated half a million pesos worth of damage from the incident. But the sadness on the faces of dozens of students and employees standing outside the UP Shopping Center on Thursday morning showed that it was valued for so much more. (READ: UP student regent calls for donations following UP Shopping Center fire)

Here are photos of the UP Shopping Center, or what’s left of it, taken from the inside by Rappler’s Rambo Talabong:

– Rappler.com