What Nova Scotians rebuilding from the wildfires can learn from Fort McMurray's experience

The 2016 wildfire in Fort McMurray, Alta., was one of the costliest disasters in Canadian history and forced more than 80,000 people from the city.

It destroyed or permanently damaged nearly 2,600 homes, according to the regional municipality, and caused an estimated $3.8 billion in insurable losses.

A review conducted at the municipality's request examined what happened and the lessons that could be learned.

Local entrepreneur Marty Giles, who lost his home and had to shut down his businesses due to the wildfire, contributed to the review in its early stages. 

Giles spoke to CBC News via Zoom about what he thinks Nova Scotia can learn from Fort McMurray's experience. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length.

What has it been like hearing about what's happening in Nova Scotia, considering what you went through in Fort McMurray?

It's, I would say, a bit like deja vu. I'm watching on the news just like everybody else is. You see the evacuation, you see the devastation. It takes you back to what we went through. Those are humans and families that are going through this right now. 

What advice do you have for people who've suffered damage from these wildfires?

The one thing I would really recommend is get some independent legal advice, no matter how well or how poorly the conversation with your adjuster is going.

We found with some residents that conversation started off very well and they ended up not ending well.

That's the first thing, if I was a resident, I would do. 

And the business owners. You need to get some advice as well. What is your business interruption claim? Get that advice and see what you need to do and start planning for it.  

I'd also start accruing some expenses as a business owner for things you don't see coming at you, whether they be legal expenses, accounting expenses. You want to start because you're going to have these expenses come at you, and you need to start slowly accruing for them. So if you have something not go your way, you have some money put away for it.

What are the key things to know for people rebuilding after losing their homes?

Understanding, does your insurance policy cover architectural fees or is it just the rebuild? And that varied by resident.

And then the contents. What is in your house? 

What we do now is take photos about once a year. We go around our house and take pictures of it because you're trying to remember what was in there.

I would start your excel spreadsheet today. Living room, kitchen, and starting to put in what you remember. And what you'll be doing is tomorrow, you'll be having a coffee and go, 'Oh, we bought that Mixmaster.'

And this takes months. It really, really does. And you've got to have some documentation. You don't have to have it all today. But if you don't have that thing set up on your computer, which my wife had, you kind of forget about them.

How long can people expect rebuilding to take?

What we really found in the community was different people that wanted to settle and get it behind them, which is normal.

Sometimes you'll settle too quickly because you want to get something. And then you might miss an opportunity. Just really be sure that you're ready to sign on the dotted line to accept the settlement. Because what will end up happening is, if you do it too quick, you'll end up slowing yourself down. Now you get halfway through your build and the guy says, 'well, I'm not paying for your architectural fees.' So you're out of money.

You have to finish the rest of this house yourself, or maybe some more due diligence on the front end of that would have avoided that situation, and maybe you weren't covered for it. But at least you know to plan for it. 

I would plan that you're going to spend somewhere between three to four hours a week for the next probably year having these discussions. You know, around the kitchen table about where we're at, and understanding, and meetings and so on, just to really make sure you know what you're getting and make sure you get the most you can get.

For us, it was two and a half years later.

What are other things businesses should be looking at as they try to recover?

Figure out what you're covered for on your profits.

Get some advice and record every conversation and take really good notes on every conversation.

This is your part-time job now. It is your job to advocate for your insurance policy.

What about those cleanup costs many will face for things like smoke damage?

Usually there will be something in there in most policies for some kind of cleanup, but sometimes it might be capped.

You want to find out. You don't want to come in and think, 'OK, I'm going to get a quote for $50,000. They're going to come in to clean all my computers, clean out all the smoke and do all that stuff.' And then you find out your policy, and you've only got $30,000.

You mentioned some people in Fort McMurray are still dealing with issues seven years later. What can Nova Scotia expect?

You guys are in for a five-year deal, this is going to go on for five years. You've got some resources here in Alberta, so I think you need to reach out. 

I think also reach out to the people in Calgary who went through the flood. 

High River were part of the flood as well. Those are some good things to learn, I think.

Check the CBC News Climate Dashboard for live updates on wildfire smoke and active fires across the country. Set your location for information on air quality and to find out how today's temperatures compare to historical trends.