A Nipomo house fire last night destroyed an unfinished structure intended for farmworker housing under H2A, a government program for temporary foreign farmworkers. The cause of fire is still under investigation, but Cal Fire said they suspect arson.
Cal Fire said the incident was reported at 11:25 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6, and the blaze was knocked down at 11:51 p.m. The adjacent house, also under construction, was partially burnt as well. No people are known to have been hurt in the fire.
Rick, a neighbor who requested the Sun not use his last name, said he heard an explosion noise around 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, and when he went to see what was going on, the house “went up like a Christmas tree.”
The house was being constructed in a seven-home development called Mads Farm, purchased by Santa Maria farmers Greg and Donna France to house workers for their farm, Mar Vista Berry.
Each of the three-bedroom homes would hold up to 16 residents—a plan that didn’t sit well with some of the development’s neighbors, including Rick.
“I don’t like it, just like everybody else,” he said. “I don’t mind the people, don’t get me wrong—but go do this somewhere else.”
He said it didn’t make sense to squeeze 16 people into three bedrooms.
“They’re all going to be men, and I’ve got a little kid here, a little girl,” Rick said.
Cal Fire initially responded with two chief officers, a full engine, one water tender, one breathing support, and assistance from Santa Maria Fire. Units stayed onsite for several hours, but decreased to one engine and minimized presence by 1:55 a.m. on Thursday morning, according to Cal Fire.
Rick said he believed an arsonist, likely someone who opposed the Mads Farm plan, was responsible for the incident.
“It went up too quick,” Rick said. “Something was in there. That thing was engulfed.”
He said that no matter how upset people are about the Mads Farm plan, arson would be going “a little too far.”
“But they’ll keep doing it, whoever’s doing it,” Rick said. “Someone’s pissed. But that’s just too extreme. You’ve got people here with kids and shit. There’s another way to go about it, I’m sure. That ain’t the way. Hell no.”
A damage total from the fire has not yet been reported.
This article appears in Apr 7-14, 2016.