NEVADA COUNTY, Calif. (KCRA) – An 83-year-old veteran from California is being forced to start over – without insurance – after a fire destroyed his house and everything he had, leaving him with just the shirt on his back.
Emotions are running high for 83-year-old Alan Fowler, a disabled Vietnam veteran, as he is forced to start over after a fire destroyed his home. He was attending a meeting for the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue, with whom he’s been volunteering since 2010, when the fire broke out.
“The meeting usually goes until 8 p.m. or so. So, I decided to lock up the cats inside and left. On the way home, I saw all these fire engines, and they turned left on my street. I said, ‘Oh no, I don’t like that,’” he said.
Fowler followed the fire engines up his driveway to find his house engulfed in flames. Fire crews worked to put out the blaze and were able to salvage the rest of the property, like his garage and fruit trees, but the entire house was destroyed. He also lost his four beloved cats.
“I lost everything – except I had a T-shirt and a long shirt, Levi’s and boots. That’s all I had left when I got here,” Fowler said. “The dollar amount of damages is probably well over half a million.”
The veteran couldn’t turn to his insurance company as he looked to rebuild. He says the company canceled his policy a few weeks before the fire.
“It was all fine as long as I’m giving them money, but then, they found out that I had an older place and decided not to insure it,” Fowler said.
He says the company also cited wildfire risk. It’s an issue that homeowners across California are dealing with. Data analyzed by the San Francisco Chronicle shows that more than 100,000 people have lost their home insurance over the past five years.
“Profit is more important than people. Profit is what counts to the insurance people, and they don’t care that it protects people and helps people get through this,” Fowler said.
Despite what he’s going through, Fowler says he’s maintaining a positive outlook. He says multiple community members have stepped up and offered him donations and places to stay as he tries to rebuild. A GoFundMe has also been set up for the veteran.
He says he hopes his story enacts change for other homeowners who might have to deal with a similar tragedy.
“That’s why I would like to see the state take over the fire insurance,” he said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Copyright 2024 KCRA via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.