4th UPDATE) THE YOUNGEST daughter of House Speaker Jose de Venecia perished in the fire that razed his residence in Dasmariņas Village Thursday night in Makati City.
Ma. Cristina Perez de Venecia, 16, was trapped in the second floor when the fire gutted the De Venecia mansion, located at Magnolia Street in the upscale residential subdivision, starting at 11:29 PM Thursday.

The lifeless body of the young de Venecia, nicknamed “KC”, was discovered in her room as firefighters controlled the blaze early Friday morning.

According to Noel Albano, the family spokesperson, nobody thought KC was still in the house before her sister received a call from her frantically saying she was trapped in her room, which was located at the farthest end of the second floor hallway.

Albano said KC then wrapped herself in wet blankets and laid down on the bathtub inside her comfort room.

"She tried her very best to save herself," Albano said in GMA-7's "Unang Hirit." He added that the steel window grills, which was standard in all of the rooms in the mansion, had prevented her from escaping.

KC was to graduate from high school this March, Albano added.

KC’s remains are being cremated at the Loyola Memorial Chapels in Makati City.

The fire, reportedly sparked by a string of Christmas lights, first gutted the living room and house kitchen before spreading across the entire second floor of the mansion, where the private rooms of the family members were located. The first floor, where De Venecia’s offices are housed, was spared from the blaze.

The Speaker, his wife Gina and other family members were unhurt. They are currently staying at a neighbor's house, Albano said.