More than $682k worth of damage this year tied to warming fires in Columbia, five arrests made
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Records obtained by ABC 17 News show that warming fires have caused more than $682,000 worth of damage so far this year.
According to data from the Columbia Fire Department, within the past year, crews have responded to 18 warming fires. Of those fires, an estimated $682,200 worth of damage was done but only five arrests have been made.
“It's not a staggering amount and it's not a staggering impact to the fire department, currently. But it is a situation where we need to work upstream, start collaborating across the silos and start working together on outcomes that would move would move that number to a lower number,” Columbia Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said.
The largest warming-fire incident this year occurred on March 17 at the Ninth Street Noodles and Company, resulting in $250,000 worth of damage.
During Monday’s City Council meeting, Ward 2 Councilwoman Lisa Meyer raised concerns over the number of warming fires being reported and what can be done to improve the situation. Schaeffer responded by saying that while the amount of damage caused by warming fires seems like a lot for a department that responds to “16,000-to-20,000 incidents a year,” it is important to look at the bigger picture.
“There is definitely uniqueness as to all the situations, tons of variables. The fire code doesn't preclude people from using a warming fire or a cooking fire. It should be on their property. Obviously, that should go without saying, but it needs to be on their own property and it needs to be about 25 feet away from a structure,” Schaeffer said. “If we run into situations where it's out of necessity, trying to stay warm to survive, the safest place for that person to be is in one of the shelters."
Schaeffer said there are a variety of factors that contribute to warming fires, but because they are considered “unwitnessed property crimes” arrests can be hard to come by.
“It's extremely difficult to convict,” Schaeffer said. “We like to have more than just forensic evidence and eyewitness and admission of guilt, fingerprints, something that we can bring in front of a prosecutor and be able to move that forward for us.”
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