Yes it is a very strange phenomena around Western Pa. seems a business is remodeled and a fire happens just days after reopening .
The Latest Rooks East Side Tavern in Ambridge which so far is considered accidental .
To make things even stranger in Ambridge another fire a few days later destroys a bridal shop just days from opening after being remodeled from a former retail store. Both appear to be accidental at this point in time
While many of these fires can be traced to the Unscrupulous Slob Remodeling Contractors who cut corners often times by doing work without building permits or inspections and violating building codes and using sub standard materials which cash strapped business owners hire to do the remodeling on the cheap .
Many of these fires are Arson for Profit otherwise known as Insurance Fraud.
Typically a business remodels after profits start to fall and they need to update the business to bring back customers and their dollars.
This is especially true of restaurant and entertainment venues .
They do minimal remodeling to make the place look nice while not correcting code issues or actually causing additional code issues and they then stock up the business with questionable inventory they bought then mysteriously overnight there is a fire .
I can list case after case of this happening where no sooner is place reopened and its on fire all the way back to the vogue Terrace Fire .
But why a fire at night why not when the place is open?a good question.
If it is an electrical condition that causes the fire you would think its when the electrical system is under its most stress but a fire happening then would be discovered and fire fighters would be able to stop it.
But when it happens overnight and no one is around it gets a good head start and firefighters normally can do nothing but surround and drown it.
If the fire is set properly all evidence of arson is destroyed and a cause can not be determined or it appears to be accidental if done so properly by the arsonist. Like stacking cardboard and other stock up close against a heater or a portable heater being left on overnight . Deliberate Arson can also be made to look accidental like leaving loose an electrical connection as well and when it heats up and arcs looks like nothing more than sloppy electrical work. or blocking a vent on a piece of refrigeration equipment etc all innocent looking accidents and how do you prove it otherwise?
It is at this point Investigators are stymied for a cause they start looking at finances etc. and if there are enough red flags it is then up to the Insurance company to pay off or not. In many cases they do not pay off
if there are enough red flags and some times a decision is challenged.
When there is not a pay off the business owner is ruined financially .But if there is a pay off because the insurance company would rather pay off than face a court fight depending how much insurance they have the bills are paid and small profit made or owner is just made whole and walks away not rebuilding. No bankruptcy to file and loss of face with the community just a poor soul who tried and lost. all along a criminal no one knowing the wiser.
But this is if it is an arson fire what about accidental fires starting overnight?
Yes plenty of fires do start overnight often Heating Systems, Appliances and Electrical Wiring are to blame.
due to poor maintenance.
A furnace overheats because filters have not been replaced and clog up restricting air or items being stored next to furnace ignite when they get too close because of or deliberate poor house keeping
Bad wiring jobs wiring not properly terminated in box with cover and proper connectors not properly grounded then when a wire gets rubbed due to vibration it makes contact with un-grounded metal box on wood beam and small amount of current travels thru wood till beam finally drys out and catches fire a condition known as Pyrolysis if box was properly grounded the fire would be prevented as overload device would operate again this was either slob work or deliberate to cause a fire
Portable heaters, and fans left on they get dirty and gummed up or wear out and catch fire again bad house keeping
Lights left on which go bad due to wiring drying out or undersized lights which get up against combustible materials etc. and catch fire
Yes these are all things which cause fires overnight But again good house keeping and maintenance prevents this from happening and good contractors and business owners make sure all items are shut off and secured before they leave for the evening.
So even if it was accidental in many cases the accident was preventable in first place.
Of course a sleigh and crafty business owner can just let things like this go on a let a business catch fire as well its not an arson just bad house keeping but all along it was deliberate but how do you prove the bad house keeping was deliberately done.
Yes Arson is a very complicated crime hard to get convictions on and when you have experts being debunked all the time because they have used unproven junk science in determining a cause
you can see the problem why so many fires go on and a crime is gotten away with.
