Fire to smoke out bees burns down abandoned home

A property owner’s burning of dry leaves and twigs to chase out bees triggered a fire at his abandoned house in China Town on Tuesday afternoon.

No one was reported injured and no treatment was provided to anyone at the scene for medical complaints in relation to the fire, according to Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesman Derek Gersonde yesterday.

Gersonde said the fire fully engulfed the house, which was made up of wood and tin materials.

The department received a call from 911 about a structure fire in China Town on Tuesday at 3:27pm. Firefighters from Forestry 1 Unit at the Susupe Fire Station and Engine 2 from Garapan Fire Station were immediately dispatched.

Gersonde said firefighters placed the fire under control and fully extinguished it at 3:39pm.

Arson investigators determined that a property owner burned dry leaves and twigs when he noticed that bees had infested his abandoned house.

Gersonde said the fire spread rapidly to the house’s light materials that had signs of termite infestation.

DFEMS closed the case after investigators determined that the cause of the fire was accidental.

On Monday, a 63-year-old man sustained first-and second-degree burns when the burning of coconut husks as mosquito repellant triggered a fire at his semi-concrete house in Dandan.

Last June 26, the burning of coconut husks as mosquito repellant also caused the fire to spread to a parked van and a house’s garage in As Perdido. No one was injured.