Fire disaster gets personal

Butte County Supervisor Maureen Kirk and her husband, Larry Kirk, are living in a motel these days, following a fire at their California Park home last Friday (Feb. 6). During a break at this week’s supervisors’ meeting Tuesday (Feb. 10), she told the CN&R that arrangements are being made for them to move into a rented house while theirs is being repaired.

The cause of the fire was a faulty surge protector for her computer, which was located in an eating nook. That room and an adjacent kitchen suffered major damage. “Check your surge protector,” she advised Tuesday. “Make sure it’s a good one.”

Kirk (pictured) agreed the experience had increased her compassion for the hundreds of people who lost their homes in last summer’s fires. Later in the meeting, the supervisors gave preliminary approval to a plan that would allow residents in fire-stricken areas to rebuild using a relaxed building code—called Title 25—that would make construction easier and less expensive. Owner-builders would not be required to connect to the electricity grid, for example.