I wonder was there a natural gas line anywhere close to the construction. If that line was not clear of any natural gas even after the gas supply was shut off, one wrong move by a welder and—well, you get the idea.
Many very nice homes under construction in the U.S. have burned because some plumber was careless with a torch while soldering copper water pipes.Then there are the commercial building roof fires during application of the hot tar and gravel.
As for investment in obsolete technology many millions of people still listen to radio broadcasts.One can embrace new tech without tossing the old tech that is still useful.Buggy whip companies may be few but shoemakers are still in business after 6,000 years.