OKC Red Cross Helping 100 Families Displaced By Fires

The Red Cross in Oklahoma City is helping more than a hundred people who lost their homes in back to back apartment fires.

Last Friday, a fire burned 16 units near West Hefner Road and North Meridian Avenue. Less than 24 hours later another fire destroyed 16 more apartments in Southwest OKC.

The Red Cross is working more that 50 cases from these fires. Their teams look at what these people need in their recovery after losing their homes. They say each person and family is different with the amount of supplies or connection to community organizers that they need. They also say from some that recently lost their homes the recovery period is short, while others need extended time to recover. 

One of the biggest things the Red Cross wants people to realize is that for these families problems' don't end when the fire is put out, and that recovery can be a long and painful process with multiple moving pieces.

"One person may focus on needing a place to stay and furniture, that kind of thing. But they also have to remember they may need to replace all the ID's that I have or the medicines that they take," said Mary Jane Coffman, the disaster programs manager of the Red Cross.

The Red Cross says the best thing to do right now is to be prepared is case a fire happens in a home. This includes having copies of important documents, a quick grab bag and a meeting place for when you escape.