A former Windsor family's house is still standing in Fort McMurray, but they're staying in their home town for the time being.
Laura Niven, her husband and their one-year-old fled from the wild fire more than a month ago; first staying with friends in Edmonton and then Calgary before coming to see family in Windsor on the May long weekend.
She says their home was close to a burn line, so they're expecting smoke and water damage when they go back to Alberta around June 25.
"I have several friends who have returned already, and they were father away from some of the burn lines and they had smoke damage," explains Niven. "So I think it's almost impossible for many of the homes not to have smoke [damage]."
The Alberta Health Service is recommending children under seven and those with asthma to stay away until the local hospital is fully operational. Niven says that's why they're still in Windsor.
She knows it's going to be an emotional time when her family returns to Fort McMurray, but she's anxious to see what's left and to start the rebuilding process. About a third of her 30 co-workers lost their homes in the blaze.
Niven's also nervous, as she says there have been three other fires near the Alberta town in recent days, plus an apartment fire. Her family doesn't want to be forced into another evacuation.
She describes the last month as chaotic, but says the kindness and generosity of people wherever they've been staying, has been overwhelming.
Listen to BlackburnNews.com's Mike Vlasveld's full interview with Laura Niven below.
[audio mp3="http://blackburnnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Laura-Niven-Interview.mp3"][/audio]
