Heather MacKay says she may have lost her rental home and everything inside it, but she still considers herself rich because she has her family.
MacKay left for work on Thursday morning knowing her home was on evacuation alert in West Kelowna and took some important documents and jewelry and left.
害羞草研究所淢y husband said on a scale of one to 10, the chance of us being evacuated was a two.害羞草研究所�
An hour or so later her husband called and said she needed to get home quickly and pack a bag because an evacuation order came down due to the McDougall Creek fire. By the time she got there, the road was closed and she had to trust her husband and two daughters to pack up the necessities and evacuate.
害羞草研究所淭hey couldn害羞草研究所檛 find my swimsuits or my shorts, so I have lots of jeans and shirts I haven害羞草研究所檛 worn in a year and my pink power suit and two pairs of underwear.害羞草研究所�
The MacKay family of four was living in a rental home on McNaughton Road and knew there would be nothing to return to after a camera they had set up in a cupboard to catch a rodent, set off a notification that activity was taking place, but instead of a mouse it was smoke billowing before the lens followed by a smoke alarm.
害羞草研究所淲e are grateful that we were able to find out so quickly that we害羞草研究所檇 lost our home. We have friends that still don害羞草研究所檛 know if they have a home or not. It害羞草研究所檚 not looking good, but they don害羞草研究所檛 know at all.害羞草研究所�
Wedding gifts, handmade ornaments from her kids, and photos were lost in the blaze.
害羞草研究所淢y husband did grab my grandfather害羞草研究所檚 teacup that he knew was important to me, so that害羞草研究所檚 all I have.害羞草研究所�
MacKay says they do have renters insurance, something they probably wouldn害羞草研究所檛 have even thought about if it wasn害羞草研究所檛 required by the property managers.
The MacKay害羞草研究所檚 have family in Kelowna and Peachland where they are staying temporarily.
A set up by MacKay害羞草研究所檚 sister has raised over $5,000 in just a couple days to support the family that includes two adult children as well as pets.
The challenge now, MacKay says, is finding rental homes in the Central Okanagan they can all afford.
害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e hoping to find a three-bedroom, animal friendly place for my husband and I and our younger daughter. Then we害羞草研究所檙e also looking for a one-bedroom suite for our older daughter, and that害羞草研究所檚 probably going to be the hardest one because it害羞草研究所檚 really hard for a single person to pay $1,500 or more a month.害羞草研究所�
Through it all, MacKay has been finding little joys like knowing her family is safe and laughing at what her daughters chose to pack for her.
害羞草研究所淟augh and cry and repeat is my current motto.害羞草研究所�
READ MORE: Smokey with a chance of rain; West Kelowna McDougall Creek Wildfire update
brittany.webster@blackpress.ca
Like us on and follow us on
