Fire Victim Has Early Fears Over Rebuilding : Regulations: Thousand Oaks man is worried city restrictions will prevent reconstruction on his property. A councilman calls the concern unfounded.

Harman Rasnow spent Wednesday trying not to think about the future.

On his hands and knees, the 61-year-old retired engineer picked through ashes, looking for anything tangible that may have survived the Tuesday afternoon inferno that leveled his hilltop home of 29 years.

A metal spiral staircase, blackened and drooping from the intense heat, was the only structure left standing. The rest of the house was reduced to a six-inch blanket of ash, mixed with melted shards of glass, metal box springs, chair frames and nails.

Rasnow found a floor safe, some slightly charred papers that were stored in fireproof file cabinets, but not much else.

“I’d hardly like to think about what we’ve got in store for ourselves,” Rasnow said. “I’m sure we’re going to have a battle royal just to try and rebuild here.”

Rasnow’s concerns about the future of his 200-acre ranch stem from a longstanding dispute with the city of Thousand Oaks about building restrictions on his property.

“It’s never been about us wanting to develop the land,” Rasnow said. “We just felt the restrictions devalued our property.”

Now, Rasnow said he fears the regulations will prevent him from rebuilding.

They are fears that city officials called unfounded.

“If he wants to rebuild in the same footprint, I don’t think the council will have any problem recommending that he get approval,” said Frank Schillo, a Thousand Oaks city councilman.

“It is a shame what happened, and I’m sure there will be allowances so (Rasnow) does not have to jump through a lot of hoops,” Schillo said.

Rasnow said he found it difficult to have faith in public officials, particularly because he believes his house could have been saved.

“I saw them fighting the fire on the other side of the ridge. When I called to get help up here, they just refused to respond,” he said.

On Tuesday, fire officials said a lack of manpower and a need to protect other homes prevented them from responding to Rasnow’s calls for help.

“When you have a fire of this magnitude, you’re talking about a lot of homes in danger,” said Capt. Norman Plott, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department. “We don’t have enough resources to put fire crews at every home.” Fire officials declined to comment further on Wednesday.

Rasnow said he was not satisfied by the response.

“They admit it,” he said. “They let my home burn.”

For now, Rasnow said he and his family would try to pick up the pieces.

“We’re going to save time in the future to worry about rebuilding,” Rasnow said. “For now, we need to come to grips with the fact that we’ve lost everything but the clothes on our backs.”