Nineteen complaints were made in one year to Hastings District Council about a home surrounded by hoarded goods before it caught fire over the weekend.
But firefighters as recently as eight months ago did not deem the pile a fire hazard, because of a lack of ignition source – meaning there was no enforcement option available to authorities.
In the early hours of Saturday morning the “materials”, which included piles of scrap wood, ignited and quickly spread to the Frederick St home, near the Mahora shops.
Firefighters were called from Hastings, Napier and Taradale. One person was treated by ambulance staff at the scene.
Police said on Monday the fire was now being treated as suspicious, and they were investigating.
Neighbours and locals who have watched the pile in the yard grow over the past few years say they have been stunned at the lack of council action at what they claim was an obvious fire risk.
A council spokesperson said it had received the complaints, but after exploring the Health Act, Building Act and the Resource Management Act it found “no enforcement tools available” to allow it to remove goods from the private property.
The council spokesperson said staff were exploring whether there were any other options for enforcement before the fire broke out.
The council has now employed contractors for an urgent clean-up of the charred debris at the house, the cost of which is yet to be determined.
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A close neighbour, who declined to be named, said the house was set up like a “fortress” and said the last four and a half years living beside an “obvious” fire risk had been “hell” for her family.
She said she was lucky in the early hours of Saturday morning she was lying awake when “all of a sudden the room was light”.
By the time her husband went outside to have a look and came back in, the blaze had spread from the stuff piled in the front yard to the neighbours’ house.
“We woke up our three children and my mother-in-law and took them over the road, then grabbed our dog and birds.
“I also grabbed my go bag, which has our birth certificates in it, because I just knew that one day this would happen.
“Things were exploding. It was scary as hell. Just nuts man.”
Among the debris was a charred gas bottle, which was placed on the footpath near the home at Frederick St on Saturday.
Firefighters remained onsite most of the day with parts of Frederick Street closed to traffic.
The neighbour said she had made numerous complaints to the council about the piles of goods around the property.
“I’ve been sent from the council to the police to fire and back to the council.
“People have said to me ‘why don’t you just move?’
“It’s not that simple. We bought in the boom, so paid top dollar and the fortress wasn’t there then – you could see the front door.”
Fire Emergency New Zealand Hawke’s Bay adviser for risk reduction Clayton Locke said the house was assessed roughly eight months ago and no fire hazard was found.
A fire risk was different from a fire hazard, he said.
“[Even] your car parked on the side of the road can be a fire risk.
“A fire hazard has an ignition source such as an incinerator in your backyard, with grass up to the window sills,“ Locke said.
He said if a property was found to have a fire hazard, firefighters’ first approach would be education, before then issuing a notice of remedy.
Rochelle Sudfelt from ClearHoarding NZ – a task force dedicated to raising awareness, reducing stigma and providing support for homeowners who hoard – said she also made a complaint about the house last year.
“Someone from the council had assessed the property and didn’t deem it a risk to the environment until it spilled on the berm,” she said she was told.
She said one in 20 homes in New Zealand was considered at risk of becoming a “hoarding house”.
“Fire is the greatest risk to people inside these homes as well as fire and emergency staff who put themselves at risk getting inside to help people. ”
Another nearby resident said the council was receiving ongoing complaints about the Frederick St property.
“I live just down the road, the footpath always had items being dropped on council land outside.
“I asked the council if they could advise the occupant to remove it and if it could do something about the risk it was creating.
“The items were then moved into the property until the room inside was running out quickly.
“I found the council’s reply hard to believe. It said ‘sorry, we understand your concern, but there is unfortunately nothing we can do, we are aware of the property, however, we can refer your complaint to the fire services to look into’.
“Nothing happened. This property has been a fire and safety concern for years.”
Police urged anyone with information to contact Police on 105 and quote 250621/9027.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
