With the initial shock of the disaster wearing off and serious rebuilding efforts still a long way off, the immediate concern for the victims of Yorkton's Canada Day storm is cleaning up the mess and finding temporary food and shelter.
Neighbors, local community groups, and international charities are each doing their part in lending a hand.
The Red Cross had already set up operations in the Gallagher Centre on the night of the storm, moving to SIGN on Broadway by Friday morning. The organization provided food, shelter, and clothing to evacuated residents for the initial 72 hours following the storm.
"It's what the Red Cross does, and we're here for everybody," said Michael Pasloski, the Yorkton & Area Red Cross community outreach coordinator. "It's great that we're in Haiti and all those places, but we want people to understand that we're right here in the community, as well. People are shocked when we help them. They don't realize that the Red Cross is right here."
The Red Cross sheltered 70 residents on the first night, offering them rooms at SIGN or the Howard Johnson. By Monday, the group had assisted 150 people.
It was among those initial evacuees that some of the most dramatic stories of the storm could be heard.Cody Smithson's 96-year-old house on McFarlane Ave. was ruined within minutes of the start of the storm.
"My foundation caved right in," he said. "Within about 10 minutes, the water started flowing down the street. Within about 15 minutes, you started hearing a buckle, and all of a sudden it all came in."
The house's occupants chose that moment to leave the house, but escaping was already a challenge."We started driving down the street and [the water] was over the hood of the van."
Smithson didn't get a chance to return to the house the next morning, but he received word that by that time the building was virtually splitting in half.
Randa-Leigh Ironstand, a resident of Laurier Ave., had to be evacuated with her family by canoe."I went out to the back and I could see the storm coming. Within 20 minutes I looked, and there was a truck that was submerged. The water had reached over the tires. Within minutes - it was rising so fast. Within half an hour, everything was flooded. You couldn't go outside, nothing. The water was up to our waists."
"The fire department came just in time," she said.
Being unable to return the following day to assess the damages added to the stress for residents faced with a near-total loss of their possessions.
"They won't even let us back in there to go get clothes or anything," said Ironstand on Friday morning. "We have children with us and older people and everything, and they won't let us back in for anything."Red Cross workers also had no definite answers for displaced residents as to who would help them after the Red Cross's three-day emergency response services had expired. It was eventually determined that Emergency Social Services would take over on Monday with the assistance of the Red Cross. With a serious shortage of hotel rooms in the city, congregate housing - cots set up in large enclosed spaces - was set up as a more long-term solution.
"This type of housing typically lasts as long as required," said Amanda Ulrich, public affairs and marketing coordinator for the Red Cross in Saskatchewan.
The Red Cross also expects to be called upon financially when it comes time for recovery.
"These families may find out that they can't afford to replace or rebuild," Ulrich said. "We will be there to fill in the gaps between insurance and provincial assistance."
To help pay for its efforts, the organization is seeking donations, which can be submitted online at www.redcross.ca; by phone at 1-800-418-1111, or in person at any Credit Union branch (until July 22). The Salvation Army is another group on-site to help affected residents. The organization's response has been hampered by the fact that it is another victim of the disaster; its facilities had significant losses due to flooding. The Saskatchewan/Manitoba Salvation Army's resources are also being drawn upon by similar situations in such locations as Maple Creek and Saskatoon, as well as areas hit by recent tornadoes.
"It has just been incredible this summer," said Major Henri Regamey, disaster coordinator for the Saskatchewan Salvation Army. "I don't know if we're stretched, but it's a challenge."
The organization has so far helped about 60 people - distributing food and clean-up packages and assisting with the work of the Red Cross and ESS. The Salvation Army's operations are presently based in the Kinsmen Arena, and once it has replaced its lost equipment later this week it plans to reopen the food bank in a space in the Parkland Mall.
"We're focusing on flood victims, but we'll help anyone else in dire need as well," said Regamey.The organization is also mobilizing its ministerial division to provide "emotional and spiritual care."
Those seeking help from the Salvation Army can visit the Kinsmen Arena. The group invites donations - cash is preferred, as it has an excess of donated clothing -which can be delivered in person at the arena or the Salvation Army Thrift Store, or by mail to Box 456 / Yorkton SK / S3N 2W4.
Residents seeking secular counseling should consider calling the Sunrise Health Region's Mental Health Services office, which offers free and confidential assistance with issues such as stress and depression in the aftermath of a disaster. Individuals can call 786-0558, contact Saskatchewan Health after hours at 1-877-800-0002, or speak with their family doctor.
"With any event like this, there's the initial shock that wears off after a while, but there is also lasting stress and sometimes depression that can arise," said community mental health nurse Deb Link. Mental Health Services, she continued, can help with any of these stages.
