‘No one’s taken responsibility’: Porterville home burns down, illegal fireworks suspected

PORTERVILLE, Calif. ( KSEE/KGPE ) – A Porterville family is living out of a hotel after a fire suspected to be caused by illegal fireworks burned down their home . Chris Nanamura, who is now living in temporary accommodation with his wife Nikki Matson, and their 10-month-old son says there is “no accountability” for those who caused that fire.

“Our biggest problem is that you have these kids setting off fireworks out in the street unsupervised,” Nanamura said. “They burn down four structures, no one’s taken responsibility – I’m not sure who their father is, but that’s not a man, you don’t raise kids like that.”

Nanamura says on June 7, he was hundreds of miles away from his family in Colorado celebrating a friend getting their PhD when he got a frantic call from his wife that their home was on fire.

“Mid-conversation she says ‘Oh my God the house is on fire’ – and she hangs up.”

Nanamura says his wife rushed to get their baby and he started calling everyone he could to help, keep himself updated on the situation at home, and warn everyone of the potential dangers.

“One of my big concerns, because I was a firefighter in Yosemite National Park, was I reload my own ammunition,” Nanamura said.

“I [also] had an oxygen, acetylene cutting torch – I was on the phone with firefighters making sure they knew where that stuff was. It would’ve leveled a lot.”

Matson says she initially heard popping and assumed it was fireworks on the property. To her surprise, she says her neighbor’s house and her own were engulfed in flames.

“I ran in, grabbed him [their baby] got him out of the house, I was able to go back in and get our dogs, and then we watched it go.”

About 10 days before the fire, Nanamura says he had a conversation with his landlord about fireworks. He says his landlord thought the loud noises she heard were from Nanamura working on something.

“I told her, ‘no, it was these kids across the street’ – and I went over and yelled at them.”

Nanamura says he had hoped his warning would be enough.

“It stopped that night, but obviously it didn’t stop because we’re here.”

Nanamura and Matson say they are grateful to the Porterville community and their neighbors who came to their aid following the fire. A GoFundMe online fundraiser has helped them take with some of the financial burdens associated with losing their home.

“We’re both pretty strong-willed people,” Matson said. “But just to know that our son has that and the things that were really special to him are going to be replaced with no sweat off our back has been such a blessing and a relief.”

Nanamura says they have not had to use the money from the GoFundMe fundraiser yet, but that is partly because he and his family do not have any room for anything as they are still living in a hotel.

“We lost everything,” Nanamura said. “There’s intangible stuff, that’s memories, more than the value.”

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