ELK, Wash. — For many residents of Elk, this Christmas marks three years since the Oregon Road Fire destroyed their homes, leaving them still searching for permanent housing solutions.
Steve VanBuskirk, who has lived in Elk his entire life, represents the ongoing struggle many fire survivors face. He has spent the past two and a half years living in a fifth wheel trailer on his property after watching his home burn in the devastating wildfire.
“I’ve been up there for the last two and a half years in a fifth wheel and it ain’t no fun,” VanBuskirk said.
The day of the fire remains vivid in VanBuskirk’s memory. “I was coming from town and you could see the smoke. And so I stopped at my daughter’s and she said, your place is on fire up there,” he recalled.
The landscape where VanBuskirk once called home has been dramatically altered by the fire’s destruction. “Oh, it’s a lot different. It looks like a scary movie now,” he said, describing the burned-out trees that now dominate the area.
However, VanBuskirk’s situation represents a rare success story among fire survivors. A new house now stands among the charred remains of trees on his property, and he hopes to move in during the spring.
“I was kind of thinking it might not happen. And then all of a sudden it did. So made me real happy,” VanBuskirk said about his upcoming move.
His new home was made possible through the work of the Spokane Region Long Term Recovery Group, a nonprofit organization that has used donations and Spokane County funding to help several families rebuild their homes after the Oregon Road Fire.
Despite these efforts, the organization says the need far exceeds available resources. Many fire survivors continue to live in substandard conditions nearly three years after losing their homes.
“There are still a lot of people that are living in RVs, in sheds. One of our current builds is, a family that, is an elderly woman, with a disabled son and five children that have been living in three sheds,” said Craig Sanders from the Spokane Region Long Term Recovery Group.
The nonprofit is positioned to expand its services through a $44 million Housing and Urban Development grant that was awarded to Spokane County last January. The organization has been recommended to receive over $2 million in funding from this grant and serve as a navigation center for those impacted by the fires.
Currently, the Spokane Region Long Term Recovery Group operates with three case managers. If appointed as a navigation resource, the organization could potentially hire additional staff and provide expanded services to those who need assistance.
“It would provide, so much relief and hope for the, fire survivors. They’ve been waiting,” Sanders said about the potential federal funding.
Spokane County Commissioners are scheduled to vote on the navigation center proposal next month. The decision could unlock additional funding and resources for fire survivors who have been waiting years for permanent housing solutions.
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