Starting Over After A House Fire

Did you know that December and January are peak months for home fires? There are many reasons a house fire can start. Unattended cooking pots, faulty wiring, candles left unattended, portable electric heaters plugged into power strips, and cigarette butts are all common causes of a house fire. Due to a dry climate, California was hit with multiple wildfires in 2018, burning over 20,000 structures leaving many people with nothing but the clothes on their back. In the United States, fire departments recorded 499,000 structure fires in 2017, leaving many people in need of starting over after a house fire.

My sister Beth asked me to write this article after her neighbor’s home burned down. On a seemingly ordinary day, she heard sirens in her neighborhood and went to investigate. Beth saw her neighbor outside watching her house burn while firefighters did their best to contain and extinguish the flames. The woman was in total shock and who can blame her!

My family has seen firsthand the devastating effects of a sister and a mother-n-law whose homes were destroyed by fire. So Beth immediately jumped into action. She offered to make phone calls for her neighbor, while the woman tried to reach her husband. Beth offered her neighbor a coat and brought her home so she’d have a warm place to wait. As family and friends arrived, many wanted to know what the family needed RIGHT NOW. Her neighbor, who was still in shock, was unable to identify what her immediate needs might be.

Within this article, you will find a starting over to-do list, a needs assessment list, helpful tips, and ways you can help others in case of a house fire.

Starting Over After A House Fire To-Do List

1. NOTIFY

Fire Department – Call 911 first so they can dispatch the fire department to save as much of your home and personal possessions as possible. Safety is the priority! The safety of your family, neighbors, and the community. They can determine the extent of the damage and whether it’s safe to move back into your house. Only return to your home after a fire marshal declares your housing area as safe.

Once the fire has been put out, an investigation is conducted, and a “fire report” is drawn up (expect a time frame of 7-14 business days but it could be longer). The fire report will be a valuable resource if it provides proof that it was an accident. You will need this document to cancel services, aid in insurance claims, replace official documents, etc. To request a fire report, you’ll need to contact the Emergency Service Bureau in your city. Make sure you have the date, address, and the incident number where the fire took place to request a fire report.

Loved Ones – Contact your family and friends. You’ll need a support system to help you through this very emotional time. They can be a vital resource to secure your family’s basic needs and help you with the steps of rebuilding your life.  

Homeowners Insurance/Renters Insurance/Landlord – These companies usually send out a representative to conduct their own investigation, to take photos, and assess the damage. If you’re renting, your landlord should be notified right away so they can take steps to recover losses through their insurance.

Full printable checklist provided by Boulder County

2. ADDRESS IMMEDIATE NEEDS

A persons most basic needs when starting over after a fire are shelter, medication, food, water, and clothing. If some of your possessions survive the fire, you probably won’t be able touch anything until the Fire Marshall finishes their investigation which may take some time.

Shelter – Identify a temporary place to stay. House fires can have a terrifying impact on young children and animals. The best decision would be to remove them from the situation and place them in a comfortable, familiar place where they can heal from the trauma. If you are unable to contact your relatives or friends, you can always reach out to the state disaster relief department.

Doctor – Medication, glasses, and hearing aids are a major priority. Call your doctor to get new prescriptions or refills. Some important medications include but are not limited to insulin, inhalers, EpiPens, anxiety and antidepressant pills, heart medication, etc.  

Food, Water, Clothing – The Red Cross can be a valuable resource if they are present in your community. They may offer a financial donation, shelter, food, relief supplies, a phone to use, a place to shower, and clothing. Check with other charitable organizations in your local community like the Salvation Army, thrift shops, churches, and city disaster services to see what programs they offer for disaster relief. Hopefully, there will be neighbors, friends, family, and charitable organizations who are willing to help. They will need some basic info about you and your family to start gathering items your family will need. See the example below of a Needs Assessment List.

3. SECURE IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS & MANAGE FINANCES

Police Department – Empty houses can be a haven for burglars and thieves so security is extremely important. You can ask for help from your local police for security while you are not present. You may be able to start boarding up your entrances and exits around the house to restrict unwanted trespassing on your property, be sure to ask for permission if you are renting. Boarding should be done with care and your personal safety and the house’s condition should be considered before starting such work.

Post Office – You may want to place your mail on hold, forward to a new address, or open a PO Box. Getting your mail in a timely manner is important in replacing vital documents and connecting with companies you are already dealing with.

Utilities & Service Providers – Consider turning off your utilities, newspaper subscription, tv and internet connections that you are not using as a result of the fire. Make a list of your bills and make sure to keep them current if possible.

Mortgage Company/Insurance/Landlord –

Call your mortgage company to see if you qualify for loan forbearance.

If you’re renting, contact your landlord and discuss your rental contract. It is possible that you will not be held responsible for future payments because it would be covered under their insurance on the property.

If you have insurance, apply for your claim immediately. The sooner you inform your insurance company about your claim the sooner the process of reimbursement can take place. Reimbursements can take many months and years to process. Know that there’s going to be a lot of upfront cost until you recieve reimbursement checks. Keep receipts for all items purchased after the fire as you start to replace the items that were lost. The insurance company will need you to fill out a List of Personal Item Losses. In this list you will need to account for every item you can remember that was lost in the home fire. Typically, the more items you remember the more money you are reimbursed so give yourself some time and ask others for help remembering all the items that were in each room of your home. Look at past online bank statements, credit card statements, and social media photos to help you recall past purchases when starting over after a house fire.

Manage Your Documents – It would be a good idea to figure out how many important documents you will need to replace. Start applying as soon as possible to replace identification and documents that were lost in the fire. Here’s a basic list to give you some ideas of the documents you may need to replace:

• Driver’s License
• Business or Government ID
• Social Security Card
• Medical Insurance Card
• Birth, Marriage, and Death Certificates
• Debit & Credit Cards
• Passport
• Diplomas
• Titles or Deeds to Assets

Related article: 3 Steps to Disaster-proof Your Important Documents

Tips My Family & I Have Learned

1. Give yourself time to recover emotionally, it doesn’t happen once basic items are replaced or after a few months go by as you begin starting over after a house fire. You have just experienced a great loss! Some people may think it’s just stuff but a person’s possessions can represent a fond memory, a passion, a dream, an experience, a tie to family, or the memory of a great love. It may take 8 months to a year before you start to feel like your home and life are feeling normal. This is about how long it was before my family members stopped having frequent painful emotional reminders about items that they no longer had like photos from their favorite family trip or a grandmother’s china dish that was used during the holidays.  

2. Gratitude is a powerful strength builder! I have seen the shock and heartache that families experience from a house fire firsthand. There are moments when the victims feel so overwhelmed by loss and the endless tasks ahead of them to rebuild. Then I would hear stories of gratitude in their daily speech for the small and simple treasures of life. A kind gesture, a beautiful day, a moment that touched their hearts and changed their demeanor from that of a victim to that of a warrior prepared to take on the unknown and be open to what the future may bring. It has been a lesson that I carry with me that a heart of gratitude can trump fear, loss, and heartache.

3. Providing help, aid, or charity is NOT dumping off all your cast-off items from the garage or attic to those starting over after a house fire. Donations are common for victims of house fires. Some of the donations are truly helpful to the family but there are so many that are shocking! For example, dirty old blankets (hard to find a place or time to wash them), clothes for toddlers and the elderly (the family consisted of a husband and wife and their 3 teenage daughters), or couch pillows spotted with mouse droppings. It was overwhelming, time-consuming, dirty, and disheartening to find a place for all the junk and garbage that was donated. Most victims feel obligated to take all donations but don’t have a place to store them or the resources to clean them. It has changed the way I extend help and service to those in need. Getting some basic information about those in need can make a world of difference.

Ways To Help House Fire Victims

• Storage Space – Locate a place where donations can be dropped off and stored.
• Containers – Large plastic storage bins are a great way to organize household donations.
• Photos – Contact friends and family members to see if they have photos of the family and start a new photo album for them.
• Small Acts of Kindness – This is going to sound weird, but someone donated their open and slightly used mayo, mustard, ketchup, and pickles. The victim of the house fire was grateful to have something that looked so normal and wasn’t a constant reminder of the fire.
• Gift Cards – If it’s a small denomination then cash is best. It’s hard for those devastated by fire to get a $15 gift card to Kohl’s, a $20 gift card at Target, and a $30 gift card a Walmart. They might be able to get a shirt, pants, and shoes but they have to go to three separate stores to get one outfit which is a lot of time and gas. So please do some research to find which store generally frequent.
• Start a Donation Fund at a Local Bank – Replacing every necessity for each family member can be VERY EXPENSIVE. Anyone can talk to a bank teller and find out how to set up a donation fund. Even if they have insurance, in many cases, housefire victims need to purchase items first, then submit receipts for reimbursement and receiving that reimbursement can take months. Victims need access to cash immediately and many people don’t have significant savings to fall back on.
• Cell Phone – Prepaid cell phones can help if cell phones were lost.
• Offer to pay for new pharmacy prescriptions
• Circulate a Starting Over List of Needs  (Needs Assessment List PDF)   

House fires are extremely traumatic and dangerous. The impact house fires have on families, communities, and the environment is unfathomable unless you or someone you know has experienced this devastating loss.

A sense of safety, security, and general well-being is taken from individuals after a disastrous house fire. It is a daunting task to build and acquire every possession that a family once had. Victims are generally in shock, unsure of what to do, and overwhelmed by where to start picking up the pieces of their lives.

There’s so much we can learn from helping each other and accepting help. If you are faced or know someone who has faced an unfortunate event like this we hope these steps can help you to begin starting over after a house fire.

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