Nolan Haukeness is grateful that he and his wife, Jenine, were able to spend the better part of two months in Estevan, after their home in Fort McMurray, Alberta, was destroyed by wildfires earlier this spring.
Haukeness, who is a former Estevan resident, and his wife returned to Fort Mac on June 25. They went back to the city after she received the green light to return to work, and they have secured a rental property that will be their home in the months ahead.
The couple owned a duplex in the Abasand subdivision, which was one of the hardest-hit areas by the wildfires. They don鈥檛 know when their home will be rebuilt.
鈥淭he first bit of soil testing for our neighbourhood came back as toxic, so there鈥檚 a 90-day moratorium now for any building in our neighbourhood, so we can鈥檛 pour foundations,鈥� he said in an interview with the Mercury.
鈥淚f we can鈥檛 get our foundation poured by winter, we could be out of our place for a year and a half to two years.鈥�
He visited Abasand the day after they returned to Fort Mac, and found the remains of their home.
鈥淚 had to wear a respirator, and it was quite a sight,鈥� said Haukeness. 鈥淚鈥檒l put it into terms that people in Estevan can understand. If all of Pleasantdale was gone, that鈥檚 what it looks like. If all of Pleasantdale was flattened with white powder all over it, that鈥檚 what it would look like.鈥�
Some people in the neighbourhood went sifting through the rubble to find belongings, but Haukeness didn鈥檛 see anything that could be salvaged.
There was speculation that homes in Abasand might not be rebuilt, but now Haukeness said it now appears the subdivision will be redeveloped. Before homes can be constructed, debris must be removed, the land must be scraped and the soil has to be tested. If the tests aren鈥檛 satisfactory, then it will only delay the rebuilding process.
Haukeness noted at least 50 per cent of the trees in the city are black and flattened, and the landscape is black, too. Trails can鈥檛 be accessed because burnt trees might fall on people.
He has also returned to work at the Northern Lights Health Foundation, but he recognizes it could be tough to receive donations while Fort Mac continues to recover from the fire. The foundation received a lot of donations following the fire, but he knows average citizens might not have as much money for donations for a while.
Haukeness estimates that 80 per cent of residents have returned to their day-to-day lives. They鈥檙e back in their homes, and back at work. For Haukeness, his wife and the other victims, though, it鈥檚 going to be a long time before they enjoy that normalcy, and so they will lean on those who didn鈥檛 lose their homes.
鈥淭here鈥檚 two timelines in Fort McMurray now, and there will be going forward, before the fire and after the fire,鈥� said Haukeness.
The couple fled Fort McMurray on May 3, when the fires reached Fort McMurray and destroyed parts of the city. They arrived in Estevan later that week, and spent much of the next two months in the Energy City.
鈥淚t was great to be with my parents for a while,鈥� said Haukeness. 鈥淲hen something like this happens, you want to be around family.鈥�
They also spent a couple weeks visiting Jenine鈥檚 family in Newfoundland.
During the past two months, they experienced tremendous generosity from the people of the southeast. A classroom at the Oxbow Prairie Horizons School held a fundraiser for them. The Benson 4-H Club, which counts Haukeness among their alumni, also held a benefit.
And there was a pair of benefit concerts for the family in early June. Library Voices, a Regina-based band with five former Estevan residents, organized and performed the concerts, and they were joined by Joel Henderson, another former Estevan resident who performs under the name Poor Nameless Boy.
鈥淚t was really, really good to see so many familiar faces and we got so much support from people, both emotionally and, quite unexpected, financially,鈥� said Haukeness.
There were people at the Library Voices fundraisers that he hadn鈥檛 seen in 20 years. They handed over cheques to help the couple.
The money raised during those fundraisers has been put into a savings account, and will help the couple with their cost of living expenses while they wait for their home to be rebuilt. They have enough insurance money to get them through the next 12 months.
鈥淲e have a certain dollar amount that our insurance will cover us for between the time that we were out, and the time that our rebuilt home is up, and ready to live in,鈥� said Haukeness. 鈥淭he only problem with that is it could be quite a while.鈥�
He believes they were the only evacuees from Fort Mac who stayed in Estevan. It meant they talked to a lot of people about their situation, which he said helped them cope. Other evacuees probably didn鈥檛 have the same opportunity.
Haukeness has marvelled at the support shown by people from across the country for Fort Mac residents. He has spoken to some friends since returning to the city, and each one has a story to share.
鈥淭he most common phrase here in Fort McMurray, since everybody got back, has been 鈥楢re you okay?鈥� This community stands behind each other,鈥� said Haukeness. 鈥淲e got offers from people, saying 鈥� 鈥榃e can help you find this.鈥� We had purchased a number of items for our baby, and people have come forward with some great support, in both Estevan and Fort McMurray, to help us replace those items.鈥�
