Jacksonville Fire Department crews were dispatched to 448 South Mauvaisterre Street for a call for a fully engulfed vehicle fire that was starting to spread to the residence at approximately 7:30 pm Friday.
According to an incident report, fire crews were met at the scene by Jacksonville Police, who said it was believed ammunition was inside the vehicle and going off due to the fire.
Flames and heat from the fire had started to damage the north side of the home. Fire crews quickly deployed a fire line and extinguished the fire, and cooled the exterior of the home.
A section of asphalt shingle siding on the outside of the home suffered damage, and three windows were broken when they were rapidly cooled during fire suppression efforts. The vehicle, a 2009 Nissan Rogue, had not moved in the last three to four months, and the windows had been in the down position, according to witnesses on the scene.
The owner denied there being ammunition in the vehicle. The report noted that a chainsaw was found inside the vehicle during the follow-up investigation.
No injuries were reported. Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $4,000 and $400.00 in the vehicle’s contents. No damage was sustained to the inside of the home. Damage was estimated at $10,000 to the exterior of the structure. The owner stated to authorities on scene that neither the vehicle or the home were covered by insurance at the time of the blaze.
According to Jacksonville Police, the license plate on the vehicle was not registered to the vehicle in the incident. A cause of the fire was unable to be determined during the investigation, according to the Jacksonville Fire Department’s report.