Risk & Business Magazine Rogers Insurance Fall 2016 | Page 28

FORT MCMURRAY FIRE 2016

BY: KEVIN LEA,
ROGERS INSURANCE

Waiting For The Smoke To Clear
Fort McMurray Fires 2016

A

s everyone is aware, the
devastation of the Fort
McMurray fires earlier this
year was rampant. Although
the property damage from fire
and smoke was severe, fortunately there was
minimal physical injury to area residents.
This was likely due to the resourceful nature
and high level of formal safety training of
the Wood Buffalo populace.
However, as useful as first aid and other
safety training can be, it does not do much
to prepare for the long-term effects of this
devastation, including the psychological
implications and the rebuilding process.
With many residents not having an
opportunity to return home prior to being
evacuated, the impact of re-entering the
area over a month after the fires have ended
to see your home, or the homes of your
neighbors, destroyed by fire or smoke is
incredibly difficult. It was our goal to make
sure that we could help make this transition
as seamless and painless as possible.
Within the insurance industry, many
adjusters, appraisers, and restoration
businesses from across Canada and the
world descended on Fort McMurray in the
immediate aftermath of the fire. With the
majority of the smoke damage now cleaned
up, and thousands of claims files opened,

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these professionals, in large numbers,
have left for home. Although they are still
working hard from their desks across the
country and around the world, the in-person
burden of helping those affected now falls
back to those who have always been part of
the community.

finding great success in utilizing its voice
by way of social media and web updates for
clients. From raising funds to support those
that lost their homes, to providing shelter
and food to those that were displaced, the
immense amount of support from every
employee shone through.

As tough and resilient as Fort McMurray
residents may be, the population in the
support sectors is small. Despite this,
the team in place at Rogers Insurance
North (the largest brokerage in the Wood
Buffalo region) has always been dedicated
to providing the highest quality service.
With the largest natural disaster in
Canadian history to contend with (from
an insurance perspective), this team, along
with the support from the rest of the Rogers
Insurance family, has done a commendable
job of keeping the claims process moving
forward.

In total, Rogers filed approximately 5,500
claims, not counting automobile losses,
as a result of the fire. This is a significant
percentage of the total count, and especially
high when you consider that the two
offices together in Fort McMurray have
a combined staff count of around fifteen
people. Through their perseverance, and
along with support from the Calgary and
Red Deer offices, well over two thousand
claims have now been paid and closed, and
the vast majority of our clients are back in
their homes.

From the moment news spread of the fire,
the staff at Rogers Insurance stepped up to
the plate to help out colleagues, clients, and
friends in an attempt to tackle the daunting
task at hand. The in-house claims staff from
Rogers Insurance in Calgary worked day
in and day out to open claims on behalf of
every client, whether they had contacted
their broker or not. Rogers also took a
proactive approach as an organisation,

Rogers is looking forward to continuing to
work with the Wood Buffalo community
to keep the rebuilding process moving
smoothly. We encourage our clients in
any area to reach out to us if we can be of
support in any way. +

Kevin has been with Rogers Insurance
for over 4 years as a Commercial
Account Executive.