Posted on 06/10/2008 9:57:31 AM PDT by weegee
AUSTIN — State arson investigators said Monday they think they may have caught a glimpse of whoever set the weekend fire that badly damaged the Governor's Mansion after reviewing security camera footage from the historic home and surrounding buildings.
State Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado said surveillance video showed at least one intruder was on the property when the blaze started. It's unclear whether the person who started the fire acted alone, he said.
Authorities on Monday also released emergency dispatch recordings to 911 that revealed the first call reporting the fire came from a man who said he was leaving Austin's entertainment district, not from the state troopers in charge of guarding the building.
The tapes showed how quickly the fire spread from the porch to the roof. The first call to emergency dispatchers came at 1:43 a.m. from a man who said he saw flames as he walked toward the Capitol from the Sixth Street entertainment district.
"It's lit up in front. It's all lit up," he said.
Asked by the operator to describe what he saw, the man said the fire was on the front door and spreading to the roof.
Less than a minute later, the second call came from a Texas Department of Public Safety dispatcher, who reported that a trooper on the scene saw fire in front of the building.
A woman who made the third call, at 1:46 a.m., said she did not see any police but heard sirens on their way. "It's huge! It's a huge fire!" she said.
Troopers interviewed
DPS Capt. Paul Schulze said that to make sure all procedures were followed, the department was interviewing troopers who are stationed around the clock on the property.
Schulze declined to say how many troopers were on duty and what they were doing at the time.
"Obviously, anytime something like this happens, we don't like it," he said.
DPS spokeswoman Tela Mange said security first noticed a smoke alarm had been triggered, then saw the flames.
Maldonado said the presence of security officers isn't always enough to stop an arsonist.
"Bad people can do bad things, whether you're on guard or not," he said. "And we have not determined whether or not there is any fault of anyone."
The investigation is not far enough along to know whether the arsonist was a thrill-seeker or a professional, the fire marshal said.
"We are investigating every aspect," Maldonado said. "There is nothing that points one way or the other, but there is somebody out there that we need to talk to."
He said there are dozens of hours of tape from the grounds, as well as from security cameras at nearby buildings and from images captured by passers-by.
The state fire marshal asked the public to call a tip line (877-434-7345) with any information that may be relevant.
Dogs were brought in to search for possible accelerants, and agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were on the scene Monday.
Gov. Rick Perry is due to return to Austin from a European economic development trip today, but decisions on rebuilding or how to pay to restore the landmark would have to wait, a spokesman said.
"The governor, like all Texans, wants to see the mansion restored to its original luster, but there's going to be a long process here," press secretary Robert Black said. "He has to have the cooperation of the Legislature, and there may be a private sector aspect."
The state does not carry private insurance on the mansion. "The state's the insurance," Black said.
Restoration was in progress
Perry and first lady Anita Perry moved out of the mansion in October so work could begin on a $10 million renovation.
The governor's office said about $1.8 million of work had been completed, including site preparation, new plumbing and sewer lines on the grounds and a new heating and air conditioning for a carriage house where DPS officers stay. Investigators are expected to complete their review of the mansion by the end of the week, after which preservationists will begin to assess the damage.
In the absence of a suspect, how can they rule out motivation at this stage?
(Houston) Texas PING
Is his name Vanderlubbe?
Because it is probably a union dispute. They also said the mansion is undergoing a major renovation. Cheap immigrant labor taking jobs from union laborers often is good reason for reprisials.
Mafia insurance agent
The Governor wants to put security cameras down on the border to “watch” for illegal immigrants as a “virtual fence”.
Apparently someone wasn’t even watching the cameras at the Governor’s mansion if they are spotting tresspassers on tape AFTER a crime has been committed.
Dan Rather burned down the Texas Governor’s Mansion.
I have a fax from Kinkos in Austin that proves it!
That’s a good pount.
I thought I fixed that....point
Someone should lose his job over a blunder like that.
Many Texans are angry about the governor allowing the NAFTA Superhighway (starting with the TransTexasCorridor) to go thru. A lot of land and homes will be taken by eminent domain — starting in Texas — and the Texas governor is 100% in favor of it.
LOL
Right now I just want to catch who did this. It seems cameras were everywhere so they may have some good leads.
Dan Rather has a hole in his head. But that’s beside the pount!
Scumbags!
Political or not, for whatever the reason, it’s TEXAS’ loss not Perry’s.
Just a question as I’m new at posting on here. How do I do just write a post of my own without having to make it a “reply” to someone else’s post? I didn’t see a place to click on to post to write only my own comment except at the bottom of posts written by others. Thanks.
Seriously, he has many people riled but most are law abiding and will take their grievences to the polls.
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