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Traditional hut set on fire
4th arson-related case in area in 7-year period
Carolinian Affairs executive assistant John Henry Tagabuel points to the fire damage on the biggest of the traditional huts located at the Carolinian utt compound in Garapan yesterday morning. Unidentified person or persons set the hut on fire last Tuesday night. (Ferdie de la Torre)
The biggest hut at the Carolinian utt in Garapan went up in flames last Tuesday night after an unidentified person or persons set it on fire.
It is the fourth arson-related case in the area over a seven-year period.
Only the top portion of the rooftop, which is made of woods and grass, was burned as firefighters managed to stop the blaze from engulfing the whole hut. The Carolinian utt is made up of several traditional huts.
No one was reported injured in the fire.
John Henry Tagabuel, executive assistant for Carolinian Affairs, said yesterday that the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services called him at 9pm Tuesday for firefighters to get access to the Carolinian utt compound as one of the traditional huts was on fire.
Tagabuel said he has no idea who is responsible for the arson. Police have been chasing young children from hanging out there at odd hours, he added.
Tagabuel said the Carolinian utt, made in the form of a traditional Taga hut—a depiction of a Chamorro house in olden days—was built in 2013 via a donation from T Galleria and was worth $18,000.
He estimated the fire damage at $2,000.
He said the traditional huts are a way for the CNMI to promote the culture among tourists, students, children, and visitors.
Tagabuel said it’s not the first arson case at the Carolinian utt compound. A smaller Carolinian traditional hut was also burned in 2014.
He appealed to the community to provide information to law enforcement on who was behind the arson.
“We’d just like to ask [the public] to respect traditional stuff because this what signifies us as people of the CNMI,” Tagabuel said.
In August 2013, a fire believed to have been intentionally set off burned the concessionaire stand of Extreme Marine Sports at the beach site behind the Carolinian utt.
In February 2010, a fire of unknown cause burned the concessionaire stand of the Asia Marine Sports, which was located next to Extreme Marine Sports.
