COHASSET — As residents in Cohasset make moves on their properties damaged by the Park Fire, with some struggling with their insurance providers, Butte County is seeking to begin a debris removal program to help residents who may have no income to rebuild.
One Cohasset resident of 10 years, Joseph Williams, has already begun work to rebuild a fence around his property, so that his and his wife’s two dogs can roam free and stretch their legs outside the kennel — on his own dollar, though.
As Williams dug holes for fence posts Friday, he said he refused to cash a check he’d been offered from his insurance company of about one-third of his assessed damage of $75,000.
“I’m a little infuriated about it,” Williams said, because he’d been struggling, jumping through hoops just to get insurance after the Camp Fire. “To find out a disaster like this happens and they’re like, ‘no that’s not covered,’ yet they took my money …”
He said he works too much to be able to fight his insurance company, and is hoping to appeal the decision with a lawyer. In the meantime, he said he is positive about help coming from the county and state to remove rubble in his area.
He said hazardous waste was recently removed at no cost to him by Cal OES, and that a representative told him he would be contacted to clean the remained of his property.
The county received approval from the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services for the debris removal program, according to the announcement made Wednesday. It’s for private properties impacted by the Park Fire at no out-of-pocket cost to eligible owners. Little is detailed on eligibility for the program in the announcement, but more details are said to become available in the future at bit.ly/parkfirebutte.
Without insurance
Some people without insurance in the Cohasset area are reportedly staying in trailers or in tents in the area, according to Frank Ditirro, board member of Cohasset Community Association, which has been a meeting point for the community since the Park Fire.
People who depended on showers and supplies donated by the Butte County community are no longer present in Cohasset, according to Ditirro. The American Red Cross had its last day in Cohasset on Aug. 28, and the county picked up a shower trailer funded by the county on Tuesday.
Ditirro said he feels frustrated that services have left even though people are still in need of food, showers and especially drinking water because many wells in the are have been compromised.
“Some of them are staying in tents; really it’s just what people have or what people have been gifted or donated,” Ditirro said. “A lot of the people here were low income … and now they have less.”
Rebuild progress
Wood chippers and chainsaws roared through the Cohasset area on Friday, and evidence of their work was seen in log piles along Cohasset and Vilas roads.
Cohasset arborist Seth Mitchell said he has been carrying forth with removing trees for private property owners. He said he is concerned when Cohasset may be snowed in the coming months, and that he is determined to help homeowners get started rebuilding quicker than in Paradise post-Camp Fire.
Related Articles
Firefighters stop Quincy Fire’s forward progress
Park Fire reaches 99% containment; robber sentenced; Highway 70 closure | Midday Report
Future of Oroville’s fireworks sales in jeopardy
Crews slow progress of Sierra wildfire, but evacuations orders remain
Firefighters make good progress towards containing Centerville Fire
As property owners deal with their immediate vicinity, PG&E began working to underground power lines on Sept. 3 — a project that includes 28 miles of power lines, according to a press release Wednesday.
Construction workers were seen Friday trenching roadways and roadsides for a first phase of construction, planned north of Hollow Oak Road to Mud Creek Road including side roads Pine Cone Way, Bull Creek Way, Wapply Valley Lane and Euca Mission Lane.
+ There are no comments
Add yours