Some families are still receiving support two years after the Nova Scotia wildfires.
About 100 homes are still getting help from the Canadian Red Cross in relation to the Upper Tantallon and Barrington Lake blazes.
Bill Lawlor is the vice-president of the Atlantic division of the Red Cross, and says they are in communities for the long haul.
“We’re going to make sure that we provide support as long as its needed, as long as resources permit. We intend to work with and support these families until they achieve some sense of that recovery they’re looking forward to,” said Lawlor.
At the height of the fires, the Red Cross supported over 8,000 households and 20,000 individuals.
It can take years for families to sort through a wildfire.
Lawlor uses the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire as an example.
“We only closed our last file with that fire about a year ago. That’s an outlier, I’m not suggesting it takes that long for everyone, but it can take 2-3 years, particularly for those who’s homes were completely destroyed.”
Dozens of homes and structures were destroyed, thousands were evacuated.
Lawlor says the wildfires spread quickly, and that it was a particularly dry spring that caught many off guard.
He notes the Red Cross had volunteers deployed, and set up four shelter operations for immediate emergency accommodations.
They also had the insurance sector to help those who needed it, along with mental health supports.
