A multimillion-dollar mansion reportedly owned by Beyoncé and Jay-Z caught on fire Wednesday night.
According to NOLA.com, the three-story New Orleans residence, located in the Garden District, was engulfed in flames for approximately two hours before a team of 22 firefighters extinguished it. Authorities say emergency personnel were notified about a one-alarm fire at around 6:15 p.m. local time, when a residential fire alarm went off.
“If they didn’t get there when they did, it could have been much worse,” a spokesperson for the New Orleans Fire Deparment told the New York Post. “It’s a historic home.”
Although it’s unclear if anyone was inside the mansion at the time of the fire, officials say no injuries were reported in connection to the incident. It was initially unclear how the blaze started and the extent of the damage caused, but TMZ added in an update that officials determined it to be arson.
“We’re told officers initially responded to the scene following a call about a suspicious person, but upon arriving and investigating...they determined fire had been set to the property,” the outlet reported.
As NOLA previously reported, the 1920s Spanish baroque mansion was purchased by Sugarcane Park LLC in 2015. The Post points out the company is managed by Celestine Lawson, the legal name of Beyoncé’s mother, better known as Tina Lawson. Sugarcane Park’s mailing address was also reportedly the same as the one for Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé’s entertainment and management company she launched over a decade ago.
A number of outlets have also cited a 2013 listing which priced the mansion at $2.5 million. The listing also confirmed the property had 26-foot-high ceilings, a green roof, six bedrooms, six-and-half bathrooms, which are spread out between a main residence and three apartments.
Complex has reached out to Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s respective representatives for the story.
