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Update in first post..........Stand-by to evacuate

NorthernBeth

By NorthernBeth,
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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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Update: The fire has grown almost 4 times its size since we left the community.  It is now within 5 miles of our community and they have placed enormous sprinklers at 2 crucial buildings nearest the fire, including the school ( which is right across the street from our house!!! ).  They will begin evacuating the elderly, children and those with medical issues tomorrow afternoon.  The firefighters are sleeping in the school gym.  

I am really hoping that neither the school nor our house is touched by the fire.  One of my dearest friends is being extremely stubborn and refusing to evacuate despite being in the area of concern.  I wish I had any idea what to say to her, and am just praying for her safety. 

Thank-you again for the encouragement to get our family out of there.  I would be beside myself with worry if I was still in community right now!!! ( I am still worried, but grateful to be out of harm's way.) 

 

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************Original Message: So there is a fire about 10 miles from our area.  The wind is pretty bad and it is pretty dry up here.  3 communities to our west have already been evacuated.   Last night we were told to be ready to evacuate, so we packed up our bags.  

And now we are just waiting. 

And it is making me super anxious. 

I don't want to wait for someone else to tell me to evacuate. What I want to do is hop on a plane to get out of here, rent a car and then drive south far away from all these fires. But I can't because my foster son's mom wont' give me permission to leave the area yet.  She is totally comfortable waiting.  

I am just a take-charge, take-control kind of person, and sitting around waiting is just kind of killing me.

Not really asking for advice, just venting.

I am so tired of breathing and smelling smoke.  The sky is overcast and gray, not from rain just all the smoke.  I hate it so much. 

Edited by NorthernBeth
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Spryte

Spryte

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2 minutes ago, athena1277 said:

Can you call whoever is over your foster care and get permission to leave?  Maybe they can override the bio-mom?  Maybe mention how bad the smoke is for the child (and your whole family’s) health will be reason enough for you to be allowed to leave.

That was my question, too.  Can you call your SW? 

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LucyStoner

LucyStoner

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That sounds awful!  I am so sorry.  Bad air quality is hard to deal with, even if the fire doesn’t come your way.  

I could see needing permission from the state foster agency to evacuate a foster child before there is an actual evacuation order but I don’t think it is reasonable that you need the mom’s permission.  Can you contact your social worker? 

I hope you get to leave soon.  

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Katy

Katy

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Does your safety plan involve waiting or does it specify you would leave?  I’d claim my safety plan and prudent parenting provisions allow me to leave (at least the county), and if the social worker doesn’t like it they can come get him & find a temporary placement until the fire danger is gone.  They probably have higher priority things to do.

When we first got licensed the foster parent instructor went through something like that.  She did what she wanted and when several of us made a face she said, “What are they going to do? Fire me?” Less than a year later that kid’s bio mom had a relapse & in a moment of lucidity asked her to adopt the child. 

DH says he would find an in-state “vacation” to go on for about a week.  No permission needed for that. 

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Harriet Vane

Harriet Vane

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I’m so sorry for your stress. I am a foster parent, too. And I too have been held hostage by the same type of nonsense. In your situation I would absolutely escalate this with the caseworker and her supervisor and anyone else. Your concern is more than reasonable. Safety first. 

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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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Unfortunately I am fostering on a First Nations rez.  The restrictions are pretty strict here about leaving the rez without permission.   I might go around the mom and ask the worker although that would probably cause a bit of upset and I work pretty hard to keep the bio family happy and working with us as a team. But yeah, his mom is actually about 5 hours away on a medical appointment, and I am wondering If I could talk her into letting us come "visit" .

 

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prairiewindmomma

prairiewindmomma

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If Mom is away, she may not clearly understand how bad things are. When the fires were 10 miles away from us last summer our air quality ratings were hazardous and causing serious health issues. Have you framed it in that regard?

It took my lungs a month of clean air to recover.

———

And if this is not helpful, I am sorry. I just remember trying to relate this to my out of state family and they did not get it at all emotionally/mentally.

Edited by prairiewindmomma
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KSera

KSera

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5 minutes ago, NorthernBeth said:

But yeah, his mom is actually about 5 hours away on a medical appointment, and I am wondering If I could talk her into letting us come "visit" .

That seems like a good idea. Surely there has to be a point where you’re allowed to have emergent conditions come in to play and make decisions for your own safety in an emergency? And obviously you can’t leave him behind so that would entail needing to bring him to keep him safe as well. I’m colored by personal history on this, and can’t imagine being expected to stay put with the fire only 10 miles away. That’s not reasonable to ask of anyone. No one wants to be evacuating as it gets close.

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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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I am just in conversation with her right now.  She is going to talk to her husband about us getting permission to drive down there and visit and then keep on going to see my folks with our foster son, plus the daughter she still has custody of, ( whom we are currently babysitting)

Fingers crossed!!!

I haven't seen my folks since before the pandemic but didn't want to leave my family to go visit with all the fires going on. 

 

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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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Thank you guys for all the encouragement!!  It gave me the courage to get on the phone and start making phone calls, rather than just sit around wishing!!

 We have now got official approval from bio mom, deputy chief and Children's services to self-evacuate as long as we are willing to pay for it!  ( which we totally are!!)   I went and dropped by the deputy chief's house ( who is also my foster son's grandma) and she said that  other people were beginning to self -evacuate and she thought it was fine for us to take him since it was for safety's sake!!  Thank-you for all those who mentioned the safety plan.  I hadn't been thinking of that part of it, until you mentioned it!! 

Now we have  just been calling around and trying to book hotel rooms and rental cars and find a place for the cats to stay.  We are so excited to be allowed to leave and get on the road!!  We were already packed last night since the reservation was put on Evacuation stand-by!!  

The smoke is too bad today for any planes to land, but they think they will be able to get in tomorrow!!  

Thank-you again!  I thought it was impossible until I saw your reaction to the fire issue.  

😍😍😍

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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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Yes, air only.  In the winter, there is an ice road from January to March.   That is why the evacuation stand-by has been so stressful.  When they have evacuated before, the army sends up these huge planes.  You can only take 40 pounds cargo and no pets.  So we were feeling kind of worried.

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skywards

skywards

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On 7/17/2021 at 6:21 PM, NorthernBeth said:

Yes, air only.  In the winter, there is an ice road from January to March.   That is why the evacuation stand-by has been so stressful.  When they have evacuated before, the army sends up these huge planes.  You can only take 40 pounds cargo and no pets.  So we were feeling kind of worried.

Oh my gosh, an ice road? You must be way up there! Prayers that the fire will be contained before it gets to your area.

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NorthernBeth

NorthernBeth

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Thank-you to everyone who has been sending such kind thoughts and support.  The first wave of evacuees went out yesterday.  Some self-evacuated like we did.  Others are going out today I believe.  Not sure how the fire is going but the smoke was definitely beginning to affect those with asthma. 

 

Currently we are holed up in Thunder Bay which is to the south of us.  It is the edge of our children's services district, and is the limit of where we can go until we have official travel papers.   We are trying to reach his worker but this is complicated by the fact that she is from the same reserve and has also self -evacuated.   Very hard to reach people officially.  His grandmother ( who is also deputy chief of the reserve) has told me to just write up my own travel letter and get my son's bio mother to sign it, and use that as the travel letter.  While that would totally be fine up north, I feel like it might not fly down south,  with children's services.  On the other hand, she is super powerful, and I have been told in the past that whatever she says, goes.  So maybe? 

 

I will continue to try and reach her today. I will let you know what happens next. 

 

On an interesting note: firefighters from Mexico have arrived in the north to help fight fires which I think is just amazing!!  Takes a lot of bravery and kindness to go fight fires in another country!!!

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