Man staunch after fire guts campervan
David Takimoana describes himself as many things. A freelancer, a freedom camper and a free thinker.
But above all else, he is a survivor. A man who carves his own path.
So, on Thursday when his Mitsubishi L300 van in Palmerston North was completely gutted in a fire, the 29-yearold man said he remained philosophical about the loss.
‘‘To me, I practise living according to my basic needs. I’ve been doing it a couple of years now. So for me, this is just one less thing.’’
Takimoana had just returned to his van when the fire started.
He said he believed he knew what had caused it. ‘‘I saw a big gust of wind blow my tarpaulin, which knocked down my solar panel,’’ he said.
‘‘And all the wires for my electronics wrapped around the feet of the solar panel were pulled down. The reason why the fire started, in my opinion, is that the wires were shorting.
‘‘Then that burnt the plastic around the wires, which then burnt the tarpaulin. So yeah, a big gust of wind blew my house down.’’
Takimoana’s first sense of what was to come was the smell and taste of an electrical fire.
‘‘I was just fixing one of my tent poles that holds up my tarpaulin because the wind blew it down,’’ he said.
‘‘But while I was focusing on this problem, unbeknownst to me, there was another problem starting. And then that was the moment where I saw the fire getting bigger and growing faster.’’
Although it was clear the situation was serious, Takimoana did not hesitate to grab what was most important – his travelling companion rabbit, Hasta La Vista. The white albino rabbit was rescued at the last minute from a cage that is now burnt to a crisp.
‘‘I’m sad about my books because I love my literature,’’ he said. ‘‘It keeps me sane. But I didn’t bother with the electronics.
‘‘I just felt bad for the rabbit ’cause I was really stressed out, and I was thinking, ‘Well if I can’t breathe and I’m stressed, what’s it like for him?’’’
Commuters who parked their cars on Church St were familiar with the red van that had been parked on Railway Rd for more than two weeks.
Takimoana was also known in the city centre for busking on his keyboard.
Yesterday, next to the burnt-out van, Takimoana had set himself up in a blue tent and was spinning a wooden staff in the rain as people walked by.
He did not know where he was going to go and he did not have much of a plan, he said.
His clothes were cleaned and dried by a friend, and others were also helping him out.
‘‘I grew up as what they call a ward of the state, so I don’t really have that family connection. But in terms of community, yeah I think I’ve got that.’’
A Fire and Emergency NZ spokesman said one vehicle was called to the fire at 3.12pm on Thursday.
It took less than 30 minutes for it to be extinguished. The fire was not being treated as suspicious.