LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Once old buildings turn vacant— they can become a fire hazard in neighborhoods.
Due to the fire risk, Little Rock Firefighters have asked landowners and the city to keep a closer eye on the dozens of properties that have been left empty.
Vacant properties can be found all over the city as dozens of abandoned lots cover it.
Captain Doug Coffman with the Little Rock Fire Department said that this poses a significant safety hazard.
"There's certainly been numerous times where firefighters or civilians have been injured from a vacant structure," Coffman said.
LRFD explained that the home on 13th Street that caught fire this weekend had been vacant for years, previously set to be condemned. Then the fire became so large it destroyed the second story of the building.
Coffman said the problem stretches nationwide and explained that "Across the country, we have about 30,000 vacant structure fires a year."
Additionally, with no one living in vacant homes, Coffman said that it can take time before 911 is called, which allows the fire to spread wide and fast.
He added that sometimes wood rotting over time can also allow fires to spread faster.
"If squatters are there, a lot of times, they'll steal building materials... That just creates exposure, where a fire is directly contacting wood, and it's going to go up that much faster," Coffman described.
According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, in 2020, an estimated 1,186 people were homeless in Central Arkansas— though firefighters explained that they don't necessarily think they're to blame for the fires.
"[People who are homeless] try to stay warm, and they might start a fire to keep warm or to cook something, and then of course it gets out of hand," Coffman added.
The process of actually knocking a building down takes time, and money.
This year, the city budgeted $300,000 for tearing down condemned buildings.
Coffman hopes to see things move quickly, and that property owners will stay vigilant, which in turn will limit the fire risk.
"If an owner owns a vacant property, if they will keep an eye on it, you know, to keep squatters out of it, or just to keep it in as much repair as they can... We we just hate to see anybody take a chance we'll get hurt," Coffman said.