Slave Lake, three months after the fire

I looked up and all the trees on the other side of the street were totally engulfed in flame. I heard a roar of fire and the tree at our back door was on fire. While my eleven-year-old grandson was running to the car, my daughter was shielding his legs because sparks were hitting him. I checked to make sure we were all in the cars.

I couldn’t see through the smoke.  It was grayish, greenish, orange-coloured smoke.  I could hear something hitting the car and saw a burning piece of roof with shingles attached, hit my car.  There were embers hitting the windshield.

As the car inched away into the smoke, mostly I could only see the bumper in front of me. I could hear a house explode and knew that the houses were burning around us. The twenty minutes it took to get to the main street was the longest twenty minutes of my life. Because of the smoke, I couldn’t see my daughter’s car and didn’t know that my kids were all right.

—    Elaine Ulm, School bus driver, CUPE 1038 member

 

CUPE 1038 member Elaine Ulm shared her experience of having to flee her home in Slave Lake on May 15.  Her mother had been evacuated to Slave Lake the day before.  Her family was gathered at her home for a meal of bannock and stew when they decided they had to leave. The wind had changed direction and they could see the smoke rolling in.

People helped each other and took turns merging into traffic. A long line of cars waited for the highway to be opened so they could leave. Ulm and her family ended up driving to Calgary that night to stay with relatives.   She is now living in a campground near Slave Lake and hopes to have proper accommodation before winter.

“The community of Slave Lake really pulled together to make the best of a disastrous situation,” says CUPE Alberta Division President Marle Roberts.  Roberts was in Slave Lake to present a CUPE donation of $20,000 to the Alberta Red Cross Fire Relief on behalf of CUPE members across Canada and CUPE National’s executive board.

The donation was made to assist the community with their rebuilding efforts. “CUPE is a union that works in the community, volunteers in the community, and is a part of the community,” said Roberts. “We’re happy to be a part of the rebuilding.”

Three months ago fires ravaged Slave Lake. Two fires swept through the surrounding area, fueled by 100mph winds, and converged on the town.  Residents in the surrounding area had already been evacuated from their homes to Slave Lake on Saturday, and by Sunday everyone had to leave Slave Lake.

Donald Bourne, Recovery Manager Northern Alberta Fire Response, accepted the cheque on behalf of the Red Cross and thanked CUPE for their generous support.

Bourne said that the direct services or relief work that the Red Cross is doing to help individuals and families is only the first phase.  Relief includes vouchers for groceries, gas, school supplies – whatever the individual or family needs. The Red Cross will also advocate on behalf of people having difficulty accessing government services and housing.

“We registered well over 15,000 people – 8,880 family units,” said Bourne.  “These people are from Slave Lake and surrounding area.”

The Red Cross had people travelling in the field for weeks to find people who had suffered damages.

“It’s going to take two years or longer for this community to have the houses rebuilt,” said Bourne.

Many of those who lost their homes to the fire are living in campgrounds or have moved in with relatives across the country.

“The idea is to move everyone from temporary accommodation into Slave Lake and mobile homes until they can build their houses,” said Bourne.  The Red Cross will provide a report on where the money donated by CUPE was spent.

Five homes belonging to CUPE Local 1038 members were lost in the fire.  

To donate directly to CUPE Local 1038, please mail your cheque to P.O. Box 1735, High Prairie, Alberta T0G 1E0.  To donate through the Red Cross, please indicate that your donation is for the Alberta Slave Lake Fire Relief.

“Even three months after the fire, I can see the devastation,” said CUPE Alberta Division president Marle Roberts. “It’s critical to keep this community in mind to help them rebuild.”

CUPE 1038 represents 70 school bus drivers who work for High Prairie school district, covering the area from Slave Lake to Girouxville.

 

For more photos, visit our photo gallery.