Fire Evacuation & Recovery

If you have friends in the MANDATORY evacuation area use text messaging to offer help. If you call them be aware, they may need help to pack up items, or find a place to house pets. If they have small children or elderly family members, they are juggling additional emotions and safety. THEREFORE, it may be easier or preferred to look on their social media account for status. If you call do not persist in a long conversation.

If you are under a voluntary evacuation, with children or elderly, pack these not so obvious items after you have packed the necessities (pictures, id documents) & (undergarments, clothes for a week, toothbrush, vitamins, medicine, diapers, baby food) & (camera, computer, etc) & (tool box). https://www.lafd.org/safety/fire-safety/evacuation-information

Dinnerware: Even if you only pack cereal bowls or plates or mugs, there is a comfort in the familiarity if you stay for an extended time away from home.

Kitchen tools: Yes, you can get replacements BUT if you have them on hand it is LESS stressful than buying replacements that may only be temporarily needed: Large spoons, manual can-opener, grater, parer, blender (!),

Extension cord & usb cords: Yes, you could buy one if necessary but it’s easier to grab one in your stash

Wash clothes, towels, sheets: they have multiple usages in a pinch beyond their obvious intended use.

Activity items: Many evacuation centers will have items for children but not always tween appropriate.

Items in the fridge: those which will contaminate the fridge if power is lost. Call a friend and ask if you can drop them off to hold.

Personal care: Soap, lotions, tooth paste, antibiotic spray. Those items you prefer to use.

DO NOT PUT ANYTHING IN THE FREEZER for safekeeping. Most appliances have plastic lining and it will melt and heat may seal it shut making access very difficult.

IF YOU HAVE TIME: Take a picture of every drawer, cupboard, closet; opened with contents.

AFTERMATH:

If you have lost your home and are a renter your policy dynamics are very different than a home-owner.

If you have packed the above optional items, then you are not distracted trying to get up to speed while in a temporary housing. You need to be very focused in detailing your losses.

Take a picture of EVERYTHING even if they are charred. If there are twenty-five cans of soup etc then group them and take a picture. If you have a shelf of spices, line them-up and take a group picture. THEN TAKE INDIVIDUAL PICTURES. If you have a drawer of silverware take a picture. If you returned and now have a refrigerator of rotted food, take a picture. If you have a closet full of clothes, even if burned on hangers, take a picture. Then take a picture of each item on the hanger. You will be surprised how many tags identifying the maker survive. Take a picture of the melted appliances or electronic equipment in the front, the back, and a close-up of the s/n and maker tag. Take a picture inside EACH cupboard in the bathroom or bedroom. Then, even if they are burned, take a picture of each towel stack, then the maker label. Follow this pattern in every area of the house. Even if the house is a total loss and you think there is rubble, find the maker tags and photograph.

NOW, make a spreadsheet. Columns: Item, Category, Room located, Quantity, Maker, Purchased date, Purchase price, Replacement cost, Source for Replacement cost (url link to reputable site), notes, link to photo file.

No matter what format your insurance policy has for you to submit, if you have your own spreadsheet it can be exported, cut n’paste, handwritten into their form. BUT if you don’t have a detailed sortable list you will be undermined or overwhelmed in efficiently going through this part of the process.

If it becomes emotionally overwhelming, recruit a friend or neighbor to look at the pictures and dictate to you what they see as you input the data.

CONTINUING AFTERWORDS:

The difference between a single event (fire, accident, illness) and a community experiencing a tragedy is the ability to talk about it and have someone able to relate to you immediately. The community talks through their hurt and it heals together in some parallel fashion.

Prayer. As a Christian, if you ask me, I won’t point you to a higher source but rather solely to Jesus. However, I will give you the space to absorb everything in your own fashion and pace, while I continue to pray for the community and you.

Lastly, if you are not affected by the fire but know someone who was, DO NOT presume a month from now everything is “back to normal”. It is not. If you know someone evacuated and not able to return home, invite them over for dinner but allow them to say no. If they are elderly, offer to take them out for the day, their children are dealing with legal and insurance paperwork and may need respite. Do not say to much, don’t offer cliché’s, don’t isolate, and most of all don’t be afraid to include a soft and gentle invitation to your regular routines and activities you previously enjoyed together. Time, listening, and compassion are key tools for you to gently dispense.