Fires destroy student property
by Katy DavidsonThe property of six Lewis & Clark students was lashed by unforgiving flames in two separate incidents last week.
Upperclassmen Sean Barnett, Sandra Krussel, Joe Guest, Adam Forkner, Franz Prichard, and LC graduate Alex Luboff's house was damaged by a fire the night of Nov. 4, and in an unrelated incident, senior Jeff Flowers' car became victim to flames in front of Templeton Student Center on Nov. 7.
The cause of the house fire, which occurred at 2246 NW Irving, is still classified as unknown by the residents. Both Forkner and Prichard said the flames probably began behind the dryer in the basement and climbed up throughout the two-story building. The two students who were inside at the time of the fire, Barnett and Krussel, first discovered its existence on the house's main level.
"They saw sparks and smoke come out of the heating duct and ran out of the house," Forkner said.
Outside of the building, they dialed 911. When they returned back to their house, fire trucks were already at the scene. According to Forkner, the residents of the house behind theirs had seen flames across the way and immediately called the emergency number.
Forkner and Prichard had just driven away from their home to play a show at the Plattform with their band Yume Bitsu when the fire started. As they arrived on campus, they received a call from Forkner's girlfriend, who proceeded to tell them of the house fire. Forkner said his girlfriend received the information by telephone from the residents on the scene, but did not relay the seriousness of the damage right away.
"We didn't find out until later that we couldn't live there," Forkner said.
While Yume Bitsu played its scheduled show, firemen worked across town to clear the house of any more dangers.
"It was an awesome coordinated effort by the Portland Fire Department to tear apart our house," Prichard said. "It was epic. They shut down the whole neighborhood."
The residents said many of their possessions on the first and second floors suffered from smoke and water damage, and nearly everything in the basement, including bicycles and storage, was destroyed by the relentless blaze. Almost everything belonging to Luboff, who lived in the basement, was burned.
"People's memorabilia was burnt down to a crisp," Forkner said.
The two residents said the fire only resulted in one injury. Their hedgehog Lily, who was found in the basement by a fireman, had received a cut.
One fortunate coincidence saved some of the residents, who are also avid musicians, money and sorrow. Most of their musical equipment, including a PA system, a drum set, and electric guitar and bass, was with Forkner and Prichard at the Plattform for their performance. It was usually stored in the basement of the house.
"Boy, we were lucky," Forkner said.
The house became uninhabitable after the fire so the residents spent the next three days clearing their possessions. Now the residents have spread out around Portland until they find new housing. Forkner and Prichard are staying with their girlfriends in a house in Southeast Portland. Barnett and Krussel are living in another LC student's stairwell until they leave for France next semester and Guest is staying with his girlfriend.
"The Lewis & Clark staff and faculty have been supportive," Prichard said. "Yeah, everybody's been nice. Our girlfriends have been putting up with us until we find a house," Forkner added.
The residents, who called their former home "CDIYC," or "Center for the Development of Independent Youth Culture," are holding a benefit to cover the costs of damages tonight at 10:00 pm. The CDIYC Benefit will be held at 9008 SW 26th, between Barbur Blvd. and Taylor's Ferry Road, and the suggested donation is $2. Yume Bitsu and DJ Turbo-Todd will be performing.
"The youth lost a place last Friday," Prichard said.
In related news, LC senior Jeff Flowers lost his vehicle to a blaze three days after the CDIYC fire. Flowers parked his white sedan in the loading zone in front of Fields Dining Room just before 5 pm last Friday. "I was going to eat dinner," he said.
A few minutes later, an unidentified caller informed Campus Safety that there were flames coming from a car parked in that same location. Campus Safety arrived at the scene at 5:02 pm after calling the Portland Fire Department. Some Campus Safety officers attempted to extinguish the fire which had started under Flowers' car's hood.
A fire truck arrived at the scene at 5:06 pm. Three firemen proceeded to hose down the flames underneath the car, then pried open the hood to extinguish some more. As the fire spread to the interior of the car, the firemen had to break the passenger side window to terminate the blaze. The fire department said the cause of the fire was "clearly electrical."
"They did their job," Flowers said of Campus Safety and the fire department's actions.
Flowers' father, who lives about 40 miles from LC, arrived that evening to help take care of the vehicle's disposal. Flowers said he already has a new car to drive. He said his parents had an extra vehicle to let him use and in turn, they will receive the insurance money for the damaged car when it arrives.