Hay River residents thankful to return, still on alert for possible re-evacuation

One by one, small convoys trickled into Hay River, N.W.T., Thursday afternoon.

After being displaced across the Northwest Territories for 11 days due to the wildfire burning on Hay River's doorstep, residents are finally allowed to return home. 

On Wednesday, the Town of Hay River issued a notice that the evacuation order will be downgraded to an evacuation alert. By Thursday afternoon, N.W.T. Fire said the wildfire was classified as "being held."

Longtime Hay River residents Matt and Jill Morse returned home Thursday afternoon. They had first evacuated with their two children to Enterprise and then moved on to Louise Falls Campground, where they were joined by almost 300 other evacuees. 

"I'm just happy to have a home to come home to. There's a lot of people on the reserve that don't, unfortunately, which is really sad," said Matt. 

He was confident that, just like during the flood last year, community members would come together and help however they could.

"I know just the way the North works ... we'll pull together and we'll make sure that the people that are displaced will have a place to go and hopefully be able to get back up and running soon," he said. 

Morse said it was a long 11 days away from home, but he and his family rolled with the punches, and being able to stay at the campground made that much easier. 

"They welcomed us with open arms, they made sure the facilities were up and running. In fact, I think they opened early just to help accommodate a lot of the evacuees," he said.

"We made the best of it, like Hay Riverites do."

His wife Jill said she was proud to see her family come together as a team. She said her kids learned how to maintain the camper and helped their dad —still recovering from surgery — pack heavy items.

She said by the end of it they had the whole cleaning and daily chore system down pat, a system that included being in charge of their own bath towel.

"I only brought one towel," she laughed. "Luckily, I was able to borrow three more."

Matt said while the town remains on evacuation alert, they are going to make sure they are better prepared in case they have to leave again.

"Our camper actually had been parked at our lake lot for three years without moving," he said. "We had to move a lot of stuff and grab a hitch, remove a canopy just to get out of there."

But for now, he said, it was a huge relief to come home and sleep in his own bed. 

"I'm probably gonna have the longest shower I've had in a long time. Then I'm gonna eat a steak dinner," Morse said.

Even the kitty litter

Chris Ruggles evacuated Hay River with his wife Angela, two kids, two cats, and two dogs. They spent two nights in Enterprise before also moving on to Louise Falls Campground.

He also said it was a huge relief to be home. One of the first things they did was let the animals out to run around.

"They run around free and usually come and go with the cat door. Where we went, [they] didn't really allow them that freedom," he said. 

Ruggles' daughter Noel said she was so happy to be home. The first thing she did was have a nap, take a shower, and then play baseball with her dad.

"It was awesome," she said.

Ruggles said they are unloading the camper Friday, but only to restock it with fresh supplies — just in case.

"We're still on edge for sure, as I'm assuming most of the town is," Ruggles said. "We're kinda taking inventory of what we got, loading it back up to be ready on any short notice that we need to get up and go again."

He said before the evacuation order hit, they could see the growing smoke plume northeast of their house. They started packing early and were somewhat prepared once they got the order to leave.

Ruggles said his wife Angela took the lead on preparing the camper to evacuate, which he was grateful for.

"I would have probably grabbed the kids and the animals and left," he laughed. "But she even thought about the cat litter and scoop. She had everything."

Both families said they were grateful to be home and acknowledged the work involved in keeping their community safe.

"A big thank you to all the firefighters and the town, and everyone helping with the evacuation and the fire," Morse said. "They did a great job."

Ruggles said there is still a lot of work to be done with the fire, and they can see all the crews in town and the helicopters flying by.

"Big shout-out to them and all the people in town who kept everyone updated with communications. I know that's a hard thing to do," said Ruggles.