The police are investigating whether there is a connection between yesterday’s fire at Doevenkamp and two other car fires that recently occurred. Due to yesterday’s car fire, two apartments above were declared uninhabitable.
It is now being investigated whether there was arson. The police took this into account in the fire on November 24. The fire on Dahliastraat earlier yesterday morning is also included in the investigation. Those two places are about a kilometer apart. A barn was destroyed.
The residents of the two apartments declared uninhabitable arranged replacement accommodation themselves for last night, reports Harmieke Paters, spokesperson for the Actium housing association. “We are now mapping the extent of the soot and water damage in the homes and we are making an estimate of when these people can return.”
Depending on the outcome of the inventory, various options are examined with the affected residents, says Paters. “After we have mapped out how long the recovery will take, we ask residents whether they want to spend the night in a holiday home, our temporary home or in a hotel,” says Paters. “We really care for these people who may or may not return to their homes.”
Although no concrete amounts are known yet, the damage amount is ‘close to half a million’, says Paters. “The insurance company is now investigating this.”
Because car fires broke out twice in a short period of time in the same parking lot at Doevenkamp, safety and quality of life at the apartment complex require extra attention, says Paters. “We are tackling this aspect together with the municipality. We have intensive consultations with the municipality. That is not new, we always have a lot of contact with it. But this now requires attention.” It is still unclear whether and which measures will be taken.