Crisis workers help Camp Fire evacuees with emotional support

When Camp Fire evacuees make it to a shelter, their first day is usually spent in shock.

Then comes the processing of the trauma they just lived through.Crisis workers aim to help them piece things together and tell their stories.

“Fight or flight kicks in; emotion is encoded first,” Jason Roper, program manager for Yuba County Victim Services, said Monday.

While many volunteers help sort piles of blankets or serve plates of hot food, Roper and others help with emotional support.

The wildfire — which started Thursday morning in Pulga — is now the most deadly and destructive wildfire in state history, killing 42 (known to date) and burning 117,000 acres at 30 percent containment, as of Monday evening. It nearly leveled the entire town of Paradise and residents have recounted stories of fleeing their burning cars and waiting out the blaze in creeks and grocery store parking lots.

Trauma memory is fragmented — certain reminders can trigger emotional responses, sometimes without even knowing why. The role of crisis counselors, Roper said, is to build relationships, help them begin to process and create a full narrative of what they experienced.

“It gives control back to the individual,” Roper said.

He’s learned that many evacuees already came with significant traumas from their own life, and the fire compounded those. A group with substance abuse issues was housed separately and had their own unique challenges to work through.

“This is a trigger,” Roper said. “We all bring our own stories and experiences with us.”

He knows their day-to-day dealings with evacuees only help in the shortterm; his goal is to get them connected with long-term support with help from neighboring counties, though it can be challenging to know where people will end up.

For now, officials are doing their best to create a sense of normalcy in the evacuation center at the Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds: they’ve thrown two surprise birthdays for kids; had a visit from “Mulan” (a Disney character); and have family-friendly shows and events planned over the next few days. Emotional support dogs (from a St. Bernard to a Labradoodle to an Aussie mix) enjoyed head pats and crawled into laps. The kids’ area was buzzing Monday with kids coloring and building. Adults walked their dogs or sprawled out on the rows of cots, unsure of what comes next.

“There’s a lot of desperation here,” Roper said. “A lot of uncertainty and a lot of unknown.”

This weekend, the population of the evacuation center at the Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds exceeded 300; by Monday, that number dropped by half. But officials are expecting numbers to ebb and flow depending on availability of other areas and needs. Evacuees and staff are given wristbands that identify them as belonging to the shelter; the bands also help in redeeming donated services in the area like showering at a gym or a hot meal.

Security and privacy is a concern for staff. By Saturday, uniformed officers guarded the entrances to the fairgrounds shelter — two officers are duty 24/7. The aim, Yuba-Sutter California Highway Patrol Commander Julie Horstman said, is to offer peace of mind.