An unsecured building was destroyed in a fire Sunday evening on Doré Alley in New Iberia. 

People seeking shelter from the latest cold snap may have caused a residential fire Sunday night that lit up part of downtown New Iberia, according to city fire officials.

The fire, which threw flames up to 40 feet in the air, destroyed the house at 505 Doré Alley, just off Corrine Street.

“It was apparently an abandoned house,” New Iberia Fire Chief Gordon Coppell said. “Neighbors said they saw two people messing around on the property before the fire. Neighbors also said they regularly saw people coming in and out of the house.”

No one was injured in the blaze, Coppell said.

Delinquent and vacant houses are not only an eyesore, but they also represent a danger to other homes in the area. The city of New Iberia has been diligently working to eliminate these properties through its online tax auction program, which allows for vacant and unclaimed properties to be rehabilitated and put back into service.

“We were told this was an abandoned property, and that it was not really secured,” Coppell said. “The city has been doing a good job of identifying these properties and boarding them up, but this is a private property. The owners are either not around or weren’t too worried about it.”

Coppell said that as temperatures continue downward, neighbors should report any odd activity around these vacant properties. Nationwide, fire departments see a surge in fires in vacant buildings as homeless people seek shelter, then light fires to try to stay warm.

“It’s amazing,” Coppell said. “People around these properties are aware that people are breaking into these houses. It’s not like they don’t know. When they see that, they need to contact the police department and make it known.”

People who see suspicious or unlawful activity near a vacant house or building in their neighborhood are urged to contact the New Iberia Police Department at 369-2306.