On the night from Friday to Saturday, a house belonging to an elderly man burned down in Riga. The pensioner narrowly escaped death, managing to evacuate, and could only watch as the fire destroyed his belongings.
In recent days, support from neighbors and those around him has warmed his heart, however, the man himself believes that what happened was an intentional arson and already the second attempt in two days, reports the show Degpunktā (TV3).
The flames destroyed a two-story house in Purvciems for almost five hours until firefighters were able to extinguish it. As a result, the roof and the second floor collapsed, and the first floor was flooded with water. At the ruins, the Degpunktā crew met the homeowner Andris — the man recounted that that night he managed to leave the premises in time and survived only thanks to a natural need that arose at the most crucial moment before the first spark.
"I woke up at night, I needed to go to the toilet. I went, heard some strange noise on the second floor. I slightly opened the door to the second floor and immediately closed it," says resident Andris.
Seeing that the bedroom and the second floor were engulfed in flames, Andris quickly put on outer clothing and ran out of the house — neighbors had already called the firefighters. While the fire was being extinguished, Andris gave testimony to law enforcement about what had happened. As the man told the police and the Degpunktā program, the day before the strong fire on Thursday, someone had started a small fire on the first floor of the house.
"The rescue service established that it was arson. The night before there was also — one room was burned on the first floor," says Andris.
The fact of this first call was confirmed by the rescuers — at that time, household items in the man's residence caught fire in a small area, and he could remain in the premises. Then, according to Andris, the perpetrator targeted the second floor the following night to finish what had been started and to ensure that the pensioner perished along with the house.
"I have my suspicions, but I will not name a name," adds Andris.
The man has a specific version of who is to blame and what the motives could have been, however, he leaves this question to law enforcement. After giving his testimony, police officers took Andris to spend the night at a shelter, and he spent the following nights here, near the house, sleeping under a canopy. Neighbors are not indifferent to the pensioner's plight.
"The next day I saw him all day outside, asked if he needed anything. We help with warm food. Considering that he lives under a canopy, we provided warm blankets, a pillow, to make it warmer at night," says Solvita.
Andris is immensely grateful to those around him for the fact that there is always a variety of food on the table, and comfortable blankets on the bench under the canopy.
The man is still pondering whether to contact the social service for temporary housing, noting that this house is dear to him, and he does not want to leave it for now. Saying goodbye to Degpunktā, he also sent greetings to the caring residents of Purvciems.
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