May 4, 2016 by Canadian Underwriter
An estimated 90% of the homes in the Waterways neighbourhood of Fort McMurray, Alta. have been lost as a major wildfire continues to sweep through the town.
The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo said in a media briefing on Wednesday that as of 12:30 p.m., there was 90% loss of Waterways homes and a 50% loss in the Abasand neighbourhood; four homes lost in Grayling Terrace and six more damaged, one home downtown and in Thickwood; two houses lost in Dickensfield; and 13 trailers lost in Timberlea.
Residences were not affected in the Gregoire and Saline Creek areas, the briefing said, adding that damage is under assessment in the Draper neighbourhood and Wood Buffalo remains damaged, with an estimated 30 homes lost. A boil water advisory has also been issued for the entire region, including camps.
Devastating pictures of the Beacon Hill neighborhood in #ymm from @bascaros #cbc #yeg #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/0Q4zHMAvKR
— Kelly Banks (@kellybankscbc) May 4, 2016
Video from one of my #firefighters taken am. #ymmfire he fought all night non stop. Said he ate a lot of bad smoke pic.twitter.com/EeauogFjLB
— Chad Sartison (@firefighters1st) May 4, 2016
Media reports suggest that as many as 88,000 people faced an evacuation order and 1,600 structures were destroyed. The fire has also grown to an estimated 10,000 hectares in size.
Most home and business insurance policies cover fire damage, the Insurance Bureau of Canada noted in a media release. “If residents have to leave their homes because of a mandatory evacuation order issued by civil authorities, most home and tenant’s insurance policies will provide coverage for reasonable additional living expenses for a specified period of time,” the release said.
Ppl littered all over highway! #NoWhereToGo #FortMcMurray #ymmfire #ymm @weathernetwork pic.twitter.com/WgMFoSSdt6
— C & B (@mary_sexsmith) May 4, 2016
The government of Alberta is advising people not to travel to Fort McMurray on either Highway 63 or 881 due to heavy smoke and fire. “Only essential travel should be undertaken,” the government said in a statement. Residents in rural communities are also asked to conserve water to protect against water shortage and avoid any non-essential uses of water, including bathing and washing.
Crawford & Company, an independent provider of claims solutions to the risk management and insurance industry as well as self-insured entities, said in a statement on Wednesday that it has been closely monitoring the developing situation and is rapidly mobilizing resources to respond to the region.
People turning around and now heading south down highway 63. They had been pushing people north but fire jumped #ymm pic.twitter.com/hdRIAKEQI9
— Breanna Karstens-Smith (@Breanna_KS) May 4, 2016
The company added that its ClaimsAlert call centre is receiving a “large number of calls from policyholders that are being evacuated in the region who are seeking advice and assistance.”
Crawford & Company added that it is monitoring call volumes closely and “preparing for an influx of those calls as evacuees reach safety and are able to contact us. Crawford’s Catastrophe Response Team is actively communicating with our insurer partners, commercial and government clients to establish an early assessment of their exposure and engage the Catastrophe Response Plans we have in place with them. Work is now underway to estimate claims volumes through policy counts and media reports from the region. Technical resources including loss adjusters, engineers and accountants from the Western region, across Canada, and around the world are ready to attend losses as soon as the region is cleared for entry.”
View from @FortMacToday parking lot. #ymm #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/KDlOiS9gid
— Vincent McDermott (@vincemcdermott) May 3, 2016
Pat Van Bakel, chief executive officer and president of Crawford & Company, said that “we understand that the magnitude of the event that is occurring in the Fort McMurray area has not yet been fully realized and is changing rapidly. As we learned in Kelowna and Slave Lake, this event will have an impact on the community and the people in it for quite some time.”
Economical Insurance will also be mobilizing its catastrophe response team and is committed to actively supporting local policyholders and brokers throughout the claims process, the company reported. “We are trying to locate our policyholders to provide them with emergency funding right away so they can carry on with their lives,” said Trevor Brick, western regional claims manager at Economical.
Another insurer, Aviva Canada, said that it is ready to take calls now, and it will open a claims centre in Lac la Biche on Thursday. Senior Aviva claims representatives will open the temporary command centre at the Canalta Lac la Biche Hotel at 9905 83 Avenue, Aviva Canada said in a statement. As soon as the evacuation order has been lifted from Fort McMurray, a new temporary Aviva location will be set up in the town and adjusters will be able to respond directly to the catastrophe.
According to a statement from independent adjusting and claims management firm ClaimsPro, following Tuesday’s evacuation directive, all employees of ClaimsPro’s Fort McMurray branch office were able to leave safely. The company said that all calls to the branch located on Centennial Drive are being redirected and that the branch has secured nearby accommodations, ensuring that operations will continue without disruption.
“Our hearts go out to the residents of Fort McMurray, including our staff and their loved ones who are directly impacted by this unprecedented catastrophe,” said Ross Betteridge, President of ClaimsPro. “Though ClaimsPro is now a national company, we began as a single branch in Alberta. We have roots here, and we share Alberta’s shock as this situation unfolds. We are ready to help in any way that we can.”
Independent loss adjusting service company Cunningham Lindsey said in a statement on Thursday that it has deployed adjusters on site for emergency response, and its call centre is responding to all emergency inquiries 24/7.
Kernaghan Adjusters Ltd.’s cat team is also ready for immediate deployment, starting with its Alberta adjusters and Fort McMurray office. Alberta regional manager Russ Fitzgerald is managing the Fort McMurray team and the team is available 24/7.
My harrowing drive evacuating #ymm praying for my friends pic.twitter.com/XGFWfavqR2
— Jordan J Stuffco (@jstuffcocrimlaw) May 3, 2016
Extreme wildfire in Fort McMurray area that's burned ~19,000 acres is seen by our satellites https://t.co/cW5rWrBGzt pic.twitter.com/C4IZ0wUvBy
— NASA (@NASA) May 5, 2016
We have successfully evacuated 88,000 people with no reports of injuries or casualties so far #ymmfire
— rmwoodbuffalo (@RMWoodBuffalo) May 4, 2016
Fire on highway 63 right at Mackenzie. #FortMcMurray #fortmcmurrayfire pic.twitter.com/lWWgiMCeSF
— brian_delves (@brian_delves) May 3, 2016
People are filling up on gas as they leave. Still large lineups to get out of the area #ymm #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/97Oacx23rT
— Breanna Karstens-Smith (@Breanna_KS) May 3, 2016
Sitting here in traffic jam no where to go!#FortMcMurray #ymmfire #ymm @weathernetwork #pray pic.twitter.com/9LTyXziXla
— Canadian Home Grown (@mary_sexsmith) May 3, 2016
Fire in treetops just a few hundred yards away from our office at manning Ave and King St. #ymm pic.twitter.com/hxR7Edesx2
— Cullen Bird (@CullenBird) May 3, 2016
As 10's of thousands flee Fort McMurray- stories of heroism & resilience on Hwy 63 via @CBCChrisBrown #FortMacFire https://t.co/uad4C2MyA8
— Patrick Morrell (@PatMorrell_CBC) May 5, 2016
Stunning time-lapse footage captures rapidly-spreading wildfire in Fort McMurray #FortMacFire #ymmfire #ymmhelps https://t.co/lmokbjmDYS
— Global Calgary (@GlobalCalgary) May 4, 2016
#FortMacFire – Satellite images are being provided to support emergency response efforts. #yymfire @DisastersChart pic.twitter.com/wEFizUPK3O
— Canadian Space Agency (@csa_asc) May 4, 2016
Plume is absolutely massive now. No exaggeration. #ymmfire #cbc #FortMcMurray pic.twitter.com/l0m2MhxxDt
— Chris C (@chris_cvanc) May 5, 2016
#FortMcMurray wildfire: Alberta Premier @RachelNotley discusses state of emergency with @DFriesenGlobal #ymmfire https://t.co/w526PyF1xc
— Global Edmonton (@GlobalEdmonton) May 4, 2016
Time lapse from my office pic.twitter.com/RWFx0pE7Yp
— Ryan Jeffries (@RyanJeffriesWFG) May 3, 2016
#FortMacFire #ymmfire Appears to be at Fort McMurray Airport … here's the webcam from last 6 hours until now #ymm pic.twitter.com/bPnTakuJts
— Eric Zerkel (@EricZerkel) May 5, 2016
Last 2 frame grabs of #FortMcMurray airport cam 18:41 showing smoke engulfing the camera now. #yymfire #FortMacFire pic.twitter.com/QBfQfqzuBh
— Jared Mysko (@jaredmysko) May 5, 2016
Probably 5-10 km away from #FortMacFire here. Every turn on the road it looks completely different. #cbc #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/6gXXqqTIx8
— Chris C (@chris_cvanc) May 5, 2016
Evacuating south of Fort McMurray right now. This is part of a video I took on the way out. #ymm #rmwb #yeg #yyc pic.twitter.com/n4Ckzwdyal
— Robert Murray (@NovaCanuck) May 3, 2016
One more video before I head to Anzac. Stay safe everyone. #ymm #rmwb pic.twitter.com/3dAXzWI25e
— Robert Murray (@NovaCanuck) May 3, 2016
#crazy #ymmfire #fortmcmurray #woodbuffalo pic.twitter.com/NatmkENkmi
— Dave (@DavePepler) May 3, 2016
You can hearing popping signs like there are explosions. Flames appear to be right along side highway pic.twitter.com/BUHH6OxWId
— Briar Stewart (@briarstewart) May 3, 2016
Wildfire at #ymm going from bad to worse quickly. Heavy winds carry flames closer to city. #cbc #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/gFL2At5ni4
— Terry Reith (@TerryReithCBC) May 3, 2016
Absolute mayhem on Hwy63. Firefighters yelling, "Move! Peoples houses are on fire!" #ymm #ymmfire @ctvedmonton pic.twitter.com/VGGwlWiOuT
— Sean Amato (@JSJamato) May 3, 2016
#ymmfire pic.twitter.com/qS8scJzWW7
— Tyler Burgett (@tylerburgett29) May 3, 2016
#CBC reporters confirm homes are now burning in Fort McMurray in Beacon Hill and in the Centenial Trailer Park. #ymm pic.twitter.com/jfR3icD41r
— CBC Calgary (@CBCCalgary) May 3, 2016
The view from the air is heartbreaking. Thanks to everyone working hard to get this fire under control. #ymmfire pic.twitter.com/uZ3GBLlqAW
— Rachel Notley (@RachelNotley) May 4, 2016
While I strongly sympathize to the depths of my heart with the fire victims, I am angered at the same time to now be seeing the pleas for pet rescue. Unless ALL members of the family were away at the time of the order for evacuation, which is possible, why in heaven’s name would anyone go and leave a pet behind. I have a beloved German Shepherd and I would never go and leave her behind. As a matter of fact, at one point, my neighbourhood was under an evactuation order [p.s. thankfully it didn’t materialize] but the first thing that went into my vehicle was my pet.