Laura DeNeri – Wildfire From the Woolsey Fire

Thousands of people in Southern California have been affected by the Woolsey fire. Early estimates are that at least 370 structures, many of them homes, have been destroyed. Dense smoke from those fires is smothering parts of the state with what has been described as the dirtiest air in the world.

Laura DeNeri:
Well, we were part of the Woolsey fire, and our little area was devastated. A lot of houses in our area burnt all the way to the ground. Not being from an area that had fires, it was completely new to me. We’ve only been here about 15 months. When we came back to find this massive devastation of all of our neighbors, it was great to see our home still there, but it was bitter sweet, you know, to find that your neighbors’ homes were no longer there. Our first thought was to help our neighbors, you know, just to not even have a thought for our house. It was standing. You know? We don’t need to do anything. We kind of went off and helped our neighbors just kind of get through the time of maybe going through the rubble or whatever they needed. 

Laura DeNeri:
But once they kind of go home and you come back to your house, you realize that your house has some damage too, or you’ve got smoke damage. You’ve got soot around your house. It seems so minor at the time, because you’re just so grateful that your home is there, but then you start living in that, which it isn’t conducive. You just can’t do it. So, you have to start thinking about what you’re going to do to get your home back to what it was prior to the fire.

Laura DeNeri:
I’d rate them a 10. I mean, they really took care of us, every single person. Dana was here making sure that we were taken care of. The crews came in. Jackie came through, and she was in charge of the crews, making sure that they were taking care of what needed to be taken care of. One of the most amazing things I thought that Allied did was during this time when our house was in disarray, we had planned on having our Thanksgiving, which was going to happen before the fire. After the fire we realized how important it was for us to actually still have Thanksgiving here, have our family here. It meant so much more this Thanksgiving in what we were thankful for.

Laura DeNeri:
What Allied did for us was they came in and made sure that everything was taken care of, so that we could have that Thanksgiving. They didn’t say, “Oh. I’m sorry. We’re busy, and we just can’t get a crew here.” They stepped up. They brought in the most amazing crew. They, from what I hear, doubled up the crew just so we could have our Thanksgiving, which gives that human element. They were human and kind to what our needs were in this time where it was hard for us. They made it easy. They did such a fantastic job not only with the cleaning, but making us and our family feel valued and that our needs were important. That says a lot for a company. That’s the kind of company I want. I highly recommend them. I wasn’t disappointed. I don’t think you’d be disappointed. They’re truly a family who comes in and takes care of your family.