YOU'VE SURVIVED THE WILDFIRE, BUT NOW THERE'S LOTS OF IMPORTANT QUESTIONS...
WHERE DO YOU START?
HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?
HOW DO I WORK WITH MY INSURANCE COMPANY?
"Don't be afraid to speak up.
Don't be afraid to ask questions.
...WE TACKLE THE FIVE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ASKED BY WILDFIRE SURVIVORS AND
GET YOU ANSWERS FROM THE EXPERTS.
THAT'S ALL COMING UP NEXT ON THIS SPECIAL HOW-TO DISASTER RECOVERY SHOW.
THANKS FOR JOINING US.
I'M BRYAN MAY IN THE CAL OES NEWSROOM.
IT'S A QUESTION WE HEAR IN EVERY DISASTER, "NOW WHAT?"
AND IF YOU'RE A SURVIVOR, IT'S AN IMPORTANT ONE...
THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW TO BEGIN THE RECOVERY PROCESS.
AND...
THERE'S A LOT OF INFORMATION TO CONSIDER.
IN THIS SHOW, WE'VE PUT TOGETHER FIVE OF THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS, AND REACHED
OUT TO EXPERTS TO GET YOU THE ANSWERS.
{QUESTION 1 WHERE DO I GO TO GET HELP?}
FOR MANY, THE FIRST QUESTION IS...
THE FIRST STEP.
WHERE DO I START?
WHERE DO I GO TO GET HELP?
FOR THE TWO LARGEST AND MOST DAMAGING WILDFIRES -- THE MENDOCINO COMPLEX FIRE AND CARR FIRE
-- THOSE IMPACTED SHOULD START AT WHAT'S CALLED A "DISASTER RECOVERY CENTER."
SOMETIMES YOU MAY ALSO HEAR IT REFERRED TO AS A "LOCAL ASSISTANCE CENTER."
THESE CENTERS ARE A "ONE-STOP SHOP" WHERE LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL AGENCIES COME TOGETHER
SPECIFICALLY TO HELP YOU WITH INFORMATION AND SERVICES.
THE DISASTER RECOVERY CENTER FOR LAKE COUNTY IS LOCATED AT 94-60 MAIN STREET IN UPPER LAKE.
IT IS OPEN MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY FROM 9 A-M TO 6 P-M, CLOSED ON SUNDAYS.
AND FOR RESIDENTS OF SHASTA COUNTY, THE DISASTER RECOVERY CENTER IS LOCATED IN THE FORMER K-MART
BUILDING, AT 26-85 HILLTOP DRIVE IN REDDING.
IT'S ALSO OPEN MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY FROM 9 A-M TO 6 P-M, CLOSED ON SUNDAYS.
"If anyone has suffered any damages, any losses, please let us know.
If you need any type of assistance at all.
What we here at the DRC, the Disaster Recovery Center, for is to put a face to face to your
recovery needs.
So anything that you may need, register with FEMA.
You don't have to come in to the Disaster Recovery Center, you can register by calling
[FEMA Disaster Assistance 1-800-621-3362] or our website, www.disasterassistance.gov,
you can make all of your preparation, all your registration right there."
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON EITHER OF THE DISASTER RECOVERY CENTERS, YOU CAN GO TO WILDFIRE RECOVERY
DOT ORG.
YOU CAN ALSO FIND LINKS TO YOUR LOCAL CITY OR COUNTY WEBSITE WITH SPECIFIC INFORMATION
ABOUT THE DISASTER.
WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE?
SO NOW THAT YOU KNOW ABOUT THE DISASTER RECOVERY CENTERS, THE NEXT QUESTION IS...
WHAT ELSE IS AVAILABLE?
OFTEN THERE'S RUMORS AND MISINFORMATION THAT MAY LEAD YOU TO BELIEVE YOU'RE ONLY QUALIFIED
FOR LIMITED ASSISTANCE - OR WORSE - NONE AT ALL BECAUSE OF YOUR UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES.
THE EXPERTS WE TALKED TO SAY IT'S IMPORTANT TO EXPLORE ALL THE POSSIBILITIES AND DON'T
MAKE ASSUMPTIONS.
"Don't rule yourself out for federal assistance.
A lot of times folks do.
They think, 'I'm not going to qualify.
I have a pretty good insurance policy.
Maybe my home wasn't completely destroyed.'
You've got to get yourself registered.
One of the things that's really interesting about the Carr Fire in particular, we've got
a lot of folks that suffered significant wind damage, but their home wasn't destroyed by
fire.
Those folks are still potentially eligible for federal assistance."
"We've got faith-based organizations that help folks sift through the debris and find
artifacts, family heirlooms and other cherished items that may have survived the fire.
We've got the American Red Cross that often times has financial donations that they can
make available to individuals.
Often times there's tremendous charitable contributions happening through local nonprofits
and other foundations that set up that have funding or other resources available to help
address needs that government or your insurance may not be able to address."
IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A WAY TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE GETTING THE MOST HELP AVAILABLE, ASK THAT
SIMPLE QUESTION, "WHAT ELSE IS AVAILABLE FOR ME?"
OFTEN WE FIND THAT SPECIAL PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, LIKE THOSE OFFERED BY COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS,
ARE ANNOUNCED AT LOCAL COMMUNITY MEETINGS OR TOWN HALLS.
THEY'RE NOT JUST AN UPDATE ON THE DISASTER RECOVERY PROCESS BY LOCAL OFFICIALS.
THEY'RE A GREAT WAY TO FIND OUT ABOUT WHAT ELSE MAY BE AVAILABLE FOR YOU.
HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?
THIS IS THE ONE EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW, ESPECIALLY IF YOU'VE SUFFERED A MAJOR LOSS...
"HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?"
AND, EVERY DISASTER SURVIVOR WE'VE MET WANTS TO GET "BACK TO NORMAL" AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
SO...
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT QUESTION, AND OFTEN ONE OF THE HARDEST TO ANSWER.
THERE'S PERHAPS NOBODY BETTER TO ASK THIS QUESTION TO -- THAN SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN THROUGH
IT.
PAUL LOWENTHAL IS ONE OF THE NEARLY 9-THOUSAND RESIDENTS WHO LOST THEIR HOMES IN THE DEVASTATING
OCTOBER 2017 WILDFIRES HERE IN CALIFORNIA.
HIS PERSPECTIVE, THOUGH, IS A UNIQUE ONE...
HE'S NOT ONLY A SURVIVOR, BUT A FIRST RESPONDER...
A FIREFIGHTER WHO LEFT HIS HOME TO HELP SAVE OTHERS...
AND IN THE PROCESS, HE LOST EVERYTHING.
"From initial onset, people are always eager to get ahead.
They're eager to start moving forward with the recovery process and they get edgy and
they get nervous because they don't see a lot of activity.
They're not sure with what the city, the county, the state and the federal government are doing.
"People also need to understand that there's decisions they can make really early on that
can help them move forward really quickly."
"There was a group of about 12 neighbors that all came together and met pretty quickly after
the fire and started talking about contractors and architects.
That's a prime example of how neighborhoods immediately came together and recognized that
there's going to be needs that we all have and how can we work together to help us collectively
move forward."
LOWENTHAL SAYS THE JOURNEY TO FULL RECOVERY CAN BE A LONG ONE.
ALTHOUGH THERE'S NO SET TIMELINE FOR HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE, HE RECOMMENDS BEING PATIENT,
TAKING YOUR TIME AND - MOST IMPORTANTLY - TALKING WITH OTHERS WHO HAVE BEEN THROUGH IT.
IT SHOULDN'T BE A JOURNEY YOU TAKE ALONE.
HOW DO I MAKE SURE I'M GETTING THE MOST FROM MY INSURANCE PROVIDER?
YOU'RE LIKELY FAMILIAR WITH THE PEACE OF MIND THAT COMES WITH BEING INSURED.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE, BUT HOPE YOU'LL NEVER USE.
MANY HOMEOWNERS AND RENTERS POLICIES COVER WILDFIRE DAMAGE, SO CONTACTING YOUR INSURANCE
COMPANY SHOULD BE ONE OF YOUR FIRST STEPS.
BUT, HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE YOU'RE GETTING THE MOST FROM YOUR POLICY?
THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE PROVIDES SPECIAL ASSISTANCE TO THOSE RECOVERING FROM
WILDFIRES.
"I think people immediately assume that they're in an adversarial relationship with their
insurance company, and they may ultimately be.
The first thing you need to do is call your insurance company and ask for a copy of your
policy.
That's once you've secured your safety and the safety of your loved ones and you've stabilized
your living situation.
Call your insurance company, have them walk through the contents of the policy with you.
Second, most home owner's insurance policies have coverage for your out of pocket expenses
when you've been evacuated.
Even if your home hasn't been touched by the fire, you can still be entitled to get your
lodging costs, your transportation costs, your food costs, anything associated with
your living expenses while you were evacuated outside the home might be covered."
THERE'S A LOT TO CONSIDER...
AND OFTEN A LOT YOU MAY NOT KNOW.
THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE HAS POSTED HELPFUL RESOURCES ON THEIR WEBSITE,
INCLUDING THE "TOP TEN TIPS FOR WILDFIRE CLAIMANTS."
IT'S A CHECKLIST EVERYONE SHOULD GO THROUGH WHEN CONSIDERING MAKING AN INSURANCE CLAIM.
IT'S EVEN HELPFUL FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T BEEN AFFECTED BY WILDFIRES.
COMMISSIONER JONES SAYS IF YOU'RE NOT CERTAIN YOU'RE GETTING WHAT YOU NEED FROM YOUR INSURANCE
COMPANY, YOU CAN CONTACT HIS OFFICE AND THEY ARE HAPPY TO HELP YOU.
California Department Of Insurance: 1-800-927-4357
www.Insurance.Ca.Gov YOU CAN CALL THEM AT 1 800 9-2-7 4-3-5-7
YOU CAN FIND THAT "TOP TEN" CHECKLIST AT INSURANCE DOT CA DOT GOV.
IS THERE ANYTHING I'M MISSING?
WHAT ELSE DO I NEED TO KNOW?
SO, WE'VE COVERED A LOT ALREADY, BUT BEFORE WE GO, YOU MAY, AT SOME POINT, ASK YOURSELF,
IS THERE ANYTHING I'M MISSING?
WELL, THE SIMPLE ANSWER IS, "YES."
OFTEN SURVIVORS ARE OVERWHELMED BY THE DAUNTING TASK OF RECOVERY AND IT CAN BE AN EMOTIONAL
JOURNEY...
SO IT'S UNDERSTANDABLE THEY CAN'T KNOW IT ALL.
PERHAPS THE BETTER QUESTION IS, 'WHAT ELSE DO I NEED TO KNOW?"
HERE'S TWO EXPERTS WITH SOME ANSWERS.
"That you're not in it on your own.
There's a lot of people that want to help you.
You see people come out of the woodwork when a disaster strikes."
"When Cal OES works to help communities to recover, we work with a whole community of
partners, from the Federal Government, local nonprofits, the Red Cross, faith-based organizations.
Similarly, for the individual they need to realize that there's a multitude of organizations
out there to help you, but you are your own best advocate in finding those organizations
and reaching out to those."
"Don't be afraid to speak up.
Don't be afraid to ask questions.
By not asking those questions, you're left with that unknown.
There's a lot of agencies that are directly involved with the recovery operations that
have, whether it's a hotline, whether it's a person that you can talk to and email, they're
all resources that are available for people to reach out and get those questions answered."
SO LET'S CONDENSE ALL THIS INFORMATION YOU'VE JUST HEARD INTO FIVE SIMPLE BUT IMPORTANT
TIPS FOR THOSE EFFECTED BY THE WILDFIRES.
[*Register with FEMA] FIRST...
MAKE SURE YOU REGISTER WITH FEMA, EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK YOU'RE ELIGIBLE FOR FEDERAL
ASSISTANCE.
THAT SHOULD BE STEP ONE IN YOUR RECOVERY PROCESS.
[*Visit your local Disaster Recovery Center] NEXT, MAKE SURE YOU VISIT YOUR LOCAL DISASTER
RECOVERY CENTER OR LOCAL ASSISTANCE CENTER.
AGAIN, WE'VE GOT ALL THE INFORMATION AND LOCATIONS OF THOSE CENTERS ON OUR WEBSITE, WILDFIRE
RECOVERY DOT ORG.
[*Get a copy of your policy] GET A COPY OF YOUR INSURANCE POLICY, AND HAVE
YOUR AGENT GO OVER THE POLICY WITH YOU.
[*Document Everything] DOCUMENT EVERYTHING.
EVERY CONVERSATION WITH YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY, CONTRACTOR...
REALLY ANYONE YOU TALK TO ABOUT YOUR REBUILDING.
REMEMBER, THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG PROCESS, AND THE MORE YOU DOCUMENT, THE BETTER OFF
YOU'LL BE DOWN THE ROAD...
[*Ask questions] AND FINALLY, AS YOU HEARD, IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS
-- AND YOU WILL -- ASK THEM.
BE YOUR OWN ADVOCATE AND MAKE SURE YOU GET THE ANSWERS YOU'RE LOOKING FOR.
OFTEN ADDITIONAL HELP IS AVAILABLE, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS ASK.
FOR MORE SURVIVOR INFORMATION FOR THE CARR FIRE, YOU CAN GO TO THE SHASTA COUNTY WEBSITE...
AND MENDOCINO COUNTY HAS A WEBSITE FOR SURVIVORS OF THE MENDOCINO COMPLEX FIRE.
YOU CAN ALSO VISIT THE RECOVERY WEBSITE FOR THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA...
THAT AGAIN IS WILDFIRE RECOVERY DOT ORG.
FOR ALL OF US AT CAL O-E-S, I'M BRYAN MAY.
THANKS FOR WATCHING.
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