House fire leaves family uninsured and homeless

KROKSTADELVA (Dagbladet) — Daylevon Karl Bucnag, his partner Ailene, and her cousin Sherill stood in the ruins of their Krokstadelva terraced home on Tuesday afternoon, their possessions gone and a six-figure mortgage still due.

The three Filipinos had just taken a new loan to renovate the bathroom when a plumber finished installing new piping. Five minutes after he left, Daylevon heard the fire alarm. He grabbed an extinguisher but saw flames ten metres high outside. The family escaped with only the clothes they wore; Sherill’s five-year-old son was away on holiday.

After the fire, they checked every policy they had—disability, cohabitant, life, accident, two contents policies, an e-scooter plan, and a home-purchase warranty—but no home insurance.

“We thought we had everything covered,” Daylevon said. “When we signed the purchase and loan papers, we accepted every insurance they offered. We wanted to be safe.”

A local fundraiser created the day after the blaze had collected 429,118 Norwegian kroner by Tuesday night, though the family’s target is 2.97 million.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre visited the site on Tuesday and told reporters, “I think it is every person’s worst nightmare—to lose everything.”