AUSTIN (KXAN) — A fire in South Austin destroyed the home of the Austin ISD Board of Trustees on Thursday.
Austin ISD Board Trustee Andrew Gonzalez and his partner Larissa Quintana — who also serves on the board — were coming from an Austin ISD board meeting when they opened the door to their home, finding it in ruins.
“A wall of smoke came out of the house. Immediately we knew there was a fire,” Gonzalez said. “My family has always lived in this house. We are the first owners. The only owners. My parents passed it down to me. I grew up here my whole life with my three brothers and my mother and father.”
The Austin Fire Department told KXAN the fire was caused by an insulation issue. On Saturday, the house caught fire again for the same reason, and Austin Fire had to put out the fire again as a result.
Gonzalez had two cats that were in the house when the fire occurred. Cats didn’t do that.
“My heart is more broken than I could have imagined. I would trade the house and everything if I could have our pets back,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez also said he lost a lot of his family memorabilia and artifacts from Austin ISD’s history in the fire.
“I only have the shoes and the clothes I was wearing, and that’s all,” Gonzalez said. “This is an abyss. There is nothing ahead of us but darkness and we do not know what we will need.
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