Point Reyes Light- July 20, 2000

Stinson rental agent suffers burns in apartment fire

A Stinson Beach man remained in critical condition Wednesday after a fast-moving blaze engulfed his Panoramic Highway garage apartment early Tuesday morning.

Butch Lueker, 45, was helicoptered to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek and transferred to the Alta Bates Burn Center in Berkeley. He suffered second degree burns on his hands, first degree burns on his face, and trauma to his airways from smoke inhalation.

"The burns were not life threatening," Stinson Beach Fire Chief Kendrick Rand said Tuesday. "But when you have burns like that you almost always have additional problems with smoke inhalation."

The fire started shortly before 3 a.m., and had spread through most of the 850 square-foot wooden structure when it was discovered by property owner Joe Veit.

Veit, a professional musician and director of Stinson Beach Water District, lives in the house adjacent to the garage at 6480 Panoramic Highway. He called 911 to report the blaze at 2:58 a.m. "My dogs woke me up," Veit told The Light on Tuesday. "By the time I got out there the fire was out of control. I turned on the garden hose to start spraying and then I ran into Butch. His face was covered with soot, but he was ambulatory."

No chance to save garage

Stinson Beach Fire Department arrived at the scene at 3:07 a.m., followed by fire and medical response crews from Bolinas and Point Reyes Station.

"It was pretty big by the time Joe called it in," Fire Chief Rand said. "When we got there the building was pretty much totaled. It had been burning for quite some time, but we were able to put it out quickly." Rand said that the fire was contained by 3:24 a.m., and was fully controlled at 3:31 a.m.

Law enforcement officers directed traffic away from Panoramic Highway in Stinson Beach and Mill Valley because the emergency vehicles completely blocked Panoramic during the fire fighting effort, Rand noted. The Veit property is located more than a mile above Stinson Beach, just below the boundary of Mount Tamalpais State Park.

Veit said that Lueker has lived in the garage studio for approximately two years, and appears to have lost everything he owned. Veit himself lost an early model Mazda Miata sportscar in the blaze, as well as a washer-dryer set and several bicycles. Veit's residence and a separate rental cottage were not damaged by the fire.

Saved house & parkland

Rand, who also lives on Panoramic Highway, commended the Stinson Beach Fire Department on keeping the blaze from spreading to other structures or onto parkland adjacent to the Veit property. "The firefighters did an outstanding job," he said. "I just stood there in awe as these guys did their job."

On Tuesday morning a team of four fire investigators visited the site to try to find the cause of the fire. Rand told The Light that the investigators did not make a determination at the scene, and were waiting to talk to Lueker pending his recovery. "They don't know what it was yet," he said Tuesday. "It was so burned it was difficult to tell. But there is no suspicion of foul play."

Lueker, a longtime West Marin resident, recently left a career in baking to take a rental agent position at Seadrift Realty in Stinson Beach. Lueker's manager, Katie Beacock, has established a fund to help cover his losses from the fire. Those interested in assisting Lueker can make donations to: Bank of Marin, Corte Madera, account #01131457.

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