For some who were not directly affected by the Poinsettia Fire, the May blaze may be a receding memory, one that's revived only in conversation, or when they drive down El Camino Real and other burn areas and see the black scorched earth instead of the green brush that grew there before.
But for many who were directly affected by the wind-whipped fire's trajectory, the recovery effort is ongoing and constant, an individual journey that differs from household to household. Whether it's dealing with the still-lingering smell of smoke and aggravated breathing problems or with their insurance companies, the Poinsettia Fire was a major disruption in the lives of those who were directly impacted.
"People are still being impacted by the fire," said Marie Jones-Kirk, a Carlsbad resident who volunteered with the city's Housing and Services department to interview those who were in the fire's path and direct them to available services. "They lost electricity and lost all their food. Some are on disability or other assistance. They don't have disposable income to replace what was lost in the fire and they had to put food on the table or rent was late and some are still having challenges."
Because the fire didn't meet the requirements to be designated a federal disaster, it was up to local agencies to provide assistance to those who were displaced from their homes.
In fact, it was only until mid-September that the state determined that they could provide disaster assistance.
"Once a presidential declaration is made, all sorts of resources and organizations get activated and energized," said David Harrison, the City of Carlsbad's emergency preparedness manager and co-chairman of the Ready Carlsbad Business Alliance (RCBA). "That didn't happen here, and what it means is that the bulk of the recovery assistance was up to the city, the Chamber and the individuals and organizations that donated, to get energized."
And energize it did.
"The Poinsettia Fire was a wake-up call for our community," said Toni Padron, executive vice president and COO of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce. "But one of the positive things that came out of it is that it reinforced our city's sense of community. Everyone stepped up to help those who were affected. This trying incident really reinforced 'the Carlsbad way' of doing things, and the Chamber, through the RCBA, was honored to play an integral part in the recovery."
RCBA is a collaborative of businesses brought together by the City of Carlsbad and the Chamber to promote business emergency preparedness and continuity of operations as well as community recovery through services, educational programs and cooperative partnerships. During the Poinsettia Fire, RCBA served as a clearinghouse for donations from individuals and businesses that wanted to help their community.
The alliance collected about $25,000. The money went to provide gift cards that were distributed to those who were affected by the fire. The RCBA also purchased 66 air purifiers, which helped residents clean the air in their home and which are not typically covered by insurance.
In total, 51 households, a total of 171 people, received assistance, all of them in the two affordable housing units that were the most heavily impacted by the fire.
"We were trying to focus the assistance that Ready Carlsbad provided on those who had the greatest need, who either did not have insurance, or whose insurance was not covering all of the expenses they needed for the recovery process," Harrison said.
Rebecca Calhoun and her family are among those who received help through the RCBA. Though she was one of the few people who had renter's insurance, Calhoun said the assistance from the RCBA was able to help her and her family get their life back together.
Calhoun, her husband and two young sons were displaced from their home for three weeks, during which time they stayed in a hotel in Carmel Valley.
She wasn't home at the time the fire broke out and couldn't get to her home to pick anything up because by that time the fire was too close and the traffic was being redirected.
When she finally was able to get home, Calhoun said her family was "quite fortunate."
"There was ash on the furniture and a very heavy smell of smoke and the palm tree in front of our balcony had apparently been on fire because it was black," Calhoun said. "The fire literally burned like a horseshoe around our complex … diagonally south from us a house burnt pretty much to the ground."
Even with insurance, Calhoun said the extra costs started to accumulate.
A lot of their bedding, linens and clothes were damaged in the fire. While they were out of home, they needed to get clothes for their boys as well as diapers, wipes and other necessities.
Calhoun said she was overcome with emotion when Jones-Kirk presented her with two gift cards from the Ready Carlsbad Business Alliance.
"I did not expect that much and our family desperately needed it," Calhoun said. "Ready Carlsbad was an incredible blessing."
Jones-Kirk said the residents she spoke with were thankful that the city and the community were assisting them.
"Ready Carlsbad and the City of Carlsbad allowed for a safety net in the aftermath of the fires," she said. "Everyone I gave a gift card to or an air purifier were very grateful. They said, 'Oh, wow. Now I can put food in the fridge."
The connections forged during the recovery period also led to at least one instance of a company that went above and beyond to help a member of the community.
Through the course of interviewing those affected by the fire, Jones-Kirk talked to a family that was having trouble taking a child to weekly medical appointments because their car was unreliable.
She asked Gene Manganiello of Lexus Carlsbad to see if there was anything they could do to assist with repairing the car. He soon found out that the car was beyond repair.
"The air conditioning and the gas gauge didn't work, and it was a salvaged title," Manganiello said. "Fixing it would have been throwing good money after bad."
Manganiello contacted Ivan Mendelson, the general manager at Toyota Carlsbad and they decided to help. They found a reliable trade-in vehicle, fixed it up and presented it to the family, giving them a generous trade in offer for their car and absorbing the rest of the cost as a gesture of goodwill.
"Everyone who worked on that car, from the service manager to the technicians were happy to help out," Mendelson said.
"We know we're fortunate that our store has been in Carlsbad for over 40 years," said Manganiello. "The residents of Carlsbad are pretty loyal to us and we like to give back to the community."
Jones-Kirk said that's just one of the many examples she's witnessed that show the community coming together.
"My true belief is that even in times of disaster, there are some wonderful things that can come out of that," she said.
But for many who were directly affected by the wind-whipped fire's trajectory, the recovery effort is ongoing and constant, an individual journey that differs from household to household. Whether it's dealing with the still-lingering smell of smoke and aggravated breathing problems or with their insurance companies, the Poinsettia Fire was a major disruption in the lives of those who were directly impacted.
"People are still being impacted by the fire," said Marie Jones-Kirk, a Carlsbad resident who volunteered with the city's Housing and Services department to interview those who were in the fire's path and direct them to available services. "They lost electricity and lost all their food. Some are on disability or other assistance. They don't have disposable income to replace what was lost in the fire and they had to put food on the table or rent was late and some are still having challenges."
Because the fire didn't meet the requirements to be designated a federal disaster, it was up to local agencies to provide assistance to those who were displaced from their homes.
In fact, it was only until mid-September that the state determined that they could provide disaster assistance.
"Once a presidential declaration is made, all sorts of resources and organizations get activated and energized," said David Harrison, the City of Carlsbad's emergency preparedness manager and co-chairman of the Ready Carlsbad Business Alliance (RCBA). "That didn't happen here, and what it means is that the bulk of the recovery assistance was up to the city, the Chamber and the individuals and organizations that donated, to get energized."
And energize it did.
"The Poinsettia Fire was a wake-up call for our community," said Toni Padron, executive vice president and COO of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce. "But one of the positive things that came out of it is that it reinforced our city's sense of community. Everyone stepped up to help those who were affected. This trying incident really reinforced 'the Carlsbad way' of doing things, and the Chamber, through the RCBA, was honored to play an integral part in the recovery."
RCBA is a collaborative of businesses brought together by the City of Carlsbad and the Chamber to promote business emergency preparedness and continuity of operations as well as community recovery through services, educational programs and cooperative partnerships. During the Poinsettia Fire, RCBA served as a clearinghouse for donations from individuals and businesses that wanted to help their community.
The alliance collected about $25,000. The money went to provide gift cards that were distributed to those who were affected by the fire. The RCBA also purchased 66 air purifiers, which helped residents clean the air in their home and which are not typically covered by insurance.
In total, 51 households, a total of 171 people, received assistance, all of them in the two affordable housing units that were the most heavily impacted by the fire.
"We were trying to focus the assistance that Ready Carlsbad provided on those who had the greatest need, who either did not have insurance, or whose insurance was not covering all of the expenses they needed for the recovery process," Harrison said.
Rebecca Calhoun and her family are among those who received help through the RCBA. Though she was one of the few people who had renter's insurance, Calhoun said the assistance from the RCBA was able to help her and her family get their life back together.
Calhoun, her husband and two young sons were displaced from their home for three weeks, during which time they stayed in a hotel in Carmel Valley.
She wasn't home at the time the fire broke out and couldn't get to her home to pick anything up because by that time the fire was too close and the traffic was being redirected.
When she finally was able to get home, Calhoun said her family was "quite fortunate."
"There was ash on the furniture and a very heavy smell of smoke and the palm tree in front of our balcony had apparently been on fire because it was black," Calhoun said. "The fire literally burned like a horseshoe around our complex … diagonally south from us a house burnt pretty much to the ground."
Even with insurance, Calhoun said the extra costs started to accumulate.
A lot of their bedding, linens and clothes were damaged in the fire. While they were out of home, they needed to get clothes for their boys as well as diapers, wipes and other necessities.
Calhoun said she was overcome with emotion when Jones-Kirk presented her with two gift cards from the Ready Carlsbad Business Alliance.
"I did not expect that much and our family desperately needed it," Calhoun said. "Ready Carlsbad was an incredible blessing."
Jones-Kirk said the residents she spoke with were thankful that the city and the community were assisting them.
"Ready Carlsbad and the City of Carlsbad allowed for a safety net in the aftermath of the fires," she said. "Everyone I gave a gift card to or an air purifier were very grateful. They said, 'Oh, wow. Now I can put food in the fridge."
The connections forged during the recovery period also led to at least one instance of a company that went above and beyond to help a member of the community.
Through the course of interviewing those affected by the fire, Jones-Kirk talked to a family that was having trouble taking a child to weekly medical appointments because their car was unreliable.
She asked Gene Manganiello of Lexus Carlsbad to see if there was anything they could do to assist with repairing the car. He soon found out that the car was beyond repair.
"The air conditioning and the gas gauge didn't work, and it was a salvaged title," Manganiello said. "Fixing it would have been throwing good money after bad."
Manganiello contacted Ivan Mendelson, the general manager at Toyota Carlsbad and they decided to help. They found a reliable trade-in vehicle, fixed it up and presented it to the family, giving them a generous trade in offer for their car and absorbing the rest of the cost as a gesture of goodwill.
"Everyone who worked on that car, from the service manager to the technicians were happy to help out," Mendelson said.
"We know we're fortunate that our store has been in Carlsbad for over 40 years," said Manganiello. "The residents of Carlsbad are pretty loyal to us and we like to give back to the community."
Jones-Kirk said that's just one of the many examples she's witnessed that show the community coming together.
"My true belief is that even in times of disaster, there are some wonderful things that can come out of that," she said.