NOFD: Utility theft causes fire, man arrested and two displaced [Video]

NEW ORLEANS — One person was arrested after they ran illegal electrical lines through an abandoned building, causing a fire and damage to a home nearby that left two people displaced, according to the New Orleans Fire Department.

NOFD said the fire happened around 12:40 a.m. on Wednesday at the intersection of Allen and Hope Street.

Crews said they found a “one-story wood framed abandoned dwelling involved in a fire, spreading to exposures” that struck a second alarm.

Crews worked to put the fire under control at 1:22 a.m. and requested a fire investigator.

The NOFD Investigator said they noticed “illegal electrical drop boxes which were confirmed by Entergy Electric throughout the block” and that “witnesses identified an individual who’d run the illegal electrical lines to the home.”

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