GOING HOME
Next week, most evacuees will head north on Highway 63 to confront the future in Fort McMurray. Six returning residents talk about their hopes, fears and plans.
Fort McMurray’s displaced people have been waiting what seems like an eternity to use those words — going home.
For nearly a month they have lived the life of evacuees, forced to sleep on strange beds and depend on the charity of others.
Starting June 1, according to a phased re-entry schedule, residents will finally get their chance to return to a city they were forced to flee a month ago amid the flames of a massive wildfire.
A range of emotions will wash over the 80,000 people making the long drive up Highway 63: Happiness and relief to be sure, but also trepidation as to what awaits them when they return.
Provincial officials have already warned that evacuees will not be coming back to life as they knew it.
Though Fort McMurray’s largest neighbourhoods and essential infrastructure were largely spared, close to 10 per cent of the city’s structures were burned to ash.
For those whose homes were destroyed, it’s unclear whether their return will be met with a security fence around their property, or whether they can walk onto the yards to search for anything that may have survived.
For those whose homes are still standing, there will be concerns about smokehealth coverage,brokenwere Many away. issues. damage, remediatingin wonderand during whether whichaboutthe monthwater anyone insurancecan cause theyand has re-lit; potentiallyGas appliancesspoiled along food withwill thrownhavethe fridgesto out,be and Officials freezers recommend containing residentsit. bring with them a supply of nonperishable food. Essential services such as grocery stores, pharmacies and banks are expected to be open, but it is unclear how well stocked they will be and what kind of lineups they will face. The water treatment plant is likely to be out of service for another few weeks, meaning residents will have to boil their water or use bottled water.
The hospital will be up and running for basic care, but specialized services, including acute in-patient care, obstetrics, dialysis, in-patient psychiatry and long-term care may not be restored until June 15. People with breathing difficulties, late term pregnancies or undergoing cancer or dialysis treatment have been told to stay away for now, as air quality may continue to be a problem.
As if that wasn’t enough, bears have been spotted in town, attracted to the scent of rotting food.
Officials are also worried about the emotional and psychological wounds residents have suffered, wounds that may reopen when they return. It’s possible some may relive the trauma of the mass evacuation of May 3. Some will be hit hard by their first view of the destruction.
And for many others, it will be the anxiety of wondering how long, if ever, it will take to get life back to some semblance of normal.
Provincial officials say they are readying for all of it with mental health supports, but note the wildfire is a tragedy that will be felt for years to come.