As floodwaters drain from battered New Orleans, firefighters fear some residents will set fire to their ruined homes to benefit from insurance policies that do not cover flood damage.
At least two suspicious fires at unoccupied houses were doused on Saturday, a New Orleans Fire Department official said, and firefighters were on the lookout for more.
Deputy Chief Joseph Buras said that without an investigation, neither fire could be confirmed as arson, but it was difficult to explain how the fires started in areas without electricity and where virtually no residents were present.
“I would think it’s suspicious. (Arson) is always a consideration,” Buras said.
Many homeowners could receive little compensation for their water-damaged homes because insurers have argued the destruction from the storm surge from Hurricane Katrina that broke levees in New Orleans and swept across the Gulf Coast was not covered under most policies.
Firefighters turned out in force on Saturday for a blaze at a house in the downtrodden Broadmoor neighborhood as flames leaped into the air, sending off huge plumes of black smoke.
More than a dozen trucks led by New Orleans and New York City firefighters and backed up by crews from Illinois quickly brought the fire under control, but the house, which only days before had been half-filled with water, appeared to be a total loss.
“(The owners) don’t have flood insurance, they come back and see the damage, then we get the fires,” said one firefighter who declined to be named.
'Ongoing problem'
At the scene of the fire, New Orleans acting Fire Chief Wesley Thibodeaux declined to speculate on the cause, saying concerns about arson were “all speculation.”
But Thibodeaux did worry that the wood-framed houses prevalent in the city could suffer from a rising number of fires.
“It’s going to be an ongoing problem,” he said.
Fighting the fires had been made easier by the return of water pressure, allowing the teams to use hydrants rather than bringing in supplies in trucks, he said.
“The water is coming back slowly, more every day,” he said.
Several fires broke out in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina three weeks ago after the levees that protect the city from Lake Pontchartrain gave way, allowing water to sweep across the city. But few had occurred during the two weeks after the city emptied of residents.
“We went through a lull. Now we’re seeing more in the last two days,” Buras said.
Buras was not concerned about his crews’ ability to handle the fires.
“Most of the guys are staying here,” he said, gesturing toward a French Quarter firehouse. “They’ve got no place to go, so they might as well stay here and work.”
