It took years before Detroit figured out how to control fires on Devil's Night. Now, July 4 has become a big night of arson in the city.
Last weekend's holiday was one of the most destructive nights of arson in Detroit in years, Steve Neavling writes at Motor City Muckraker:
In just 10 hours beginning at 8 p.m. on July 4, more than 60 fires broke out in houses, garages, cars, trash cans and a vacant furniture store. Two fire trucks crashed and another (Engine 27) broke down en route to a burning house as the city continues to rely on an aging, worn-down fleet of rigs.
The fires were more frequent and destructive than any period during the past five Devils’ Nights, according to a Motor City Muckraker analysis of fire data.
In those 10 hours, fires burned:
- 22 houses
- 1 commercial building
- 2 garages
- 6 cars
- 9 dumpsters
- 21 brush, piles of rubbish (not counted in final tally)
By comparison, Neavling notes, during the same 10-hour period of Devil’s Night 2014, fires burned:
- 20 houses
- 1 commercial building
- 1 garage
- 4 cars
- 2 dumpsters
- 5 brush, piles of rubbish (not counted in final tally)
"I can't understand why the city didn't plan for this like they do every year for 'Angels' Night,' " the journalist posted Saturday on his personal Facebook page.
