Former McTaggart resident Candace Funk has returned to Fort McMurray to her job with Ledcor, after spending some time at home with her parents, Ed and Dorothy Funk.
“I’m currently staying in camp at Shell Albian, as I do not yet have a place. I don’t believe I will be returning here permanently, although it is not yet decided,” she said.
One of the uncertainties she faced, besides having no home to live in as the house where her basement suite was located was completely destroyed by fire, was the status of her truck, which she had to leave behind in the city.
“My truck is okay, as I picked it up from town on Friday and took it into the shop at McKay. I picked it up from the shop yesterday and now all it needs is a really good cleaning,” she said.
Asked what it felt like to be back in Fort McMurray for the first time since fleeing the flames on May 3, she said, “The city feels strange after being gone so long. Everyone is a bit different than they were before, even crowded areas are more quiet. Everyone you see is a combination of exhausted, uneasy, and happy to be back. Lots of people are still living in the work camps, even those who don’t work on site (camps are usually accommodations for site workers only).”
She added there are some hopeful signs in the city too. “You can definitely see the scars the fire left, in both the people and the town, but things are coming back to life. There’s a lot of green in the scenery. It’s a strange contrast against the burned-out shells of homes, cars, and forest.”
