New year’s blaze sparked by heater
Western senior Erika Bjorklund woke up on the first day of 2012 to bloodcurdling screams from next door.
“We weren’t sure if they were partying on New Year’s or what,” Bjorklund said. “Then we saw flames and the screaming continued, so we got out once we realized it was in fact a fire.”
Bjorklund and her boyfriend, Western student Zack Pope, lived in the unit attached to the MacGregor family’s duplex, which caught fire at 4:22 a.m. on Jan. 1. She had lived with her sister in the duplex next door for two years and became acquainted with the MacGregor family.
In August 2011, Bjorklund and Pope moved into the duplex on the other side of the family from her sister’s unit, but did not get rental insurance. Although she had lived in places before which required insurance, Bjorklund said she didn’t think they needed it.
Bjorklund said the fire destroyed their beds and much of their clothing, but she and Pope feel it could have been worse. They are currently staying in her sister’s home until they find a new place to stay. Renovations may be done to the duplex, and the landlord is currently looking into the cost of repairs.
The fire’s primary location was identified near a baseboard heater during the initial investigation, said Roger Christensen, assistant fire chief. Evidence from the scene of a fire is taken to a lab and analyzed to ensure the fire was an accident.
“We investigate up to the point that we find there is no criminal activity going on and then turn the place back over to the homeowner,” Christiensen said.
The owner of the damaged property can then approach their insurance company to further investigate the cause of the fire. This is to assess the cost of damage.
This will be Bjorklund’s last quarter at Western before graduating with a degree in biology and mathematics as a pre-med student.
After losing her home to a fire, Bjorklund hopes more renters look into buying insurance.
“You never know when it’s going to happen so it’s been heavy on my heart to encourage students to get renters insurance because a $10,000 claim could have easily covered our losses,” said Bjorklund.
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