A St. Albert company has joined forces with cleaners from across the country to help displaced Fort McMurray residents settle back in to the community.
Sparklean, a 24-hour restoration service based in the Riel Business Park, is currently in the wildfire-ravaged city assisting with the clean-up efforts.
It is one of several DKI companies subcontracted by local cleaning and restoration company Proserve, which has been swamped with insurance claims and requests from residents since it resumed operations June 1.
DKI is a national network of restoration companies. Members from across western Canada from Lethbridge to Vancouver to Winnipeg and even one from Hamilton, Ont. arrived within a week of re-entry to support ProServe – putting about 600 to 700 feet on the ground.
“We’re going through the houses pretty fast,” said Sparklean president Mike Howes.
Howes and his crew of 44 cleaners have taken on about 120 houses, but some likely won’t be completed for another few months given the restricted access to the worst-hit communities, like Abasand Heights and Beacon Hill.
“Those areas sustained major damage and they’re not allowing people to live in those areas,” said Howes.
Earlier this week, the Wood Buffalo Municipal Council voted in favour of a bylaw that would continue to restrict access to the worst hit areas once the state of emergency ended June 30. There are concerns over the dust and soot that will be displaced while clearing debris.
Howes and his crew had to be escorted by the RCMP when assessing homes within the area. Homeowners can retrieve belongings, but only in the company of a police escort.
Similarly to the Slave Lake fire of 2011, properties were either devastated or completely undamaged. But the duration of the fire did change the scope of the cleanup said Garry Guenette, owner of Garry’s Heating in St. Albert.
Garry’s sent one employee to perform duct cleaning on commercial and residential properties.
“Most big furnace cleaning companies in Edmonton are up there right now,” said Guenette. “They have that much work, and they of course want to get it done tomorrow.”
Guennette said due to the extended period of the fire almost every business requires a duct cleaning because of ash buildup.
“In house, people are turning their furnaces on and they can smell smoke. Because there was so much for so long it did manage to get into their houses,” he said.
Howes said he expected much worse. His crew is mostly dealing with a healthy layer of dust “not much different than if you left your house in St. Albert for five or six weeks,” as well as some soot and a lingering smoke smell.
“Even a small fire on your stove puts smoke and soot everywhere (you can write your name on every wall or window.) We expected that here, but it’s not,” he said.
Though the cleanup efforts appear minimal, Proserve, on its Facebook page, warned about the health risks of undertaking this sort of work without the proper training and tools.
“We understand the rush to get home. But for the safety and health of your family, please be patient,” wrote the company in response to reports of residents experiencing headaches and heaviness in the chest after cleaning their own homes.
Howes said his crew should wrap up its operations in Fort McMurray by the end of June, save for the few properties located in the restricted areas. Judging by how easy it is becoming to book a hotel, cleanup efforts seem to be ramping down, he said.
A sense of normalcy is also returning to the community with shops, gas stations and restaurants opening daily.
