Spokane is burning.
For the past three days, wildfires have devastated Spokane, where I live and work. More than 700 structures are burned, most completely destroyed. 65,000 people are evacuated and displaced. Our beautiful state park and natural areas are leveled. The community is reeling. Many people are dealing with the loss of their homes and their pets. Some are trying to find missing loved ones. So many are standing by in fear, in anguish, or in a state of readiness—to evacuate, to help, or to get back to their homes.
Yesterday morning, I went to the primary shelter to provide emotional triage.
The Red Cross Shelter: Safety Without Comfort
The shelter, I learned, is a place for people who have nowhere else to go. The majority of the haven-seekers yesterday morning were elderly or experiencing mental health challenges.
The residents of two retirement communities were there, tended by their caretakers, most of whom are immigrants without families in the country. Those caretakers are heroes. The residents were infirm, many in wheelchairs, most completely reliant upon their nurses. They sat, still and waiting. I spoke with several of them, many of whom were surprised that I was interested in their wellbeing, all of whom were delighted to speak with me for as long as I could spare.
There were several elderly people who were totally alone after having been forced to evacuate their homes by the police. They were confused and scared. One gentleman, an 82-year-old Vietnam veteran, had not moved from his chair for 14 hours. He had not eaten, slept, or used the restroom. I recognized dementia as soon as we started speaking. I spent the next several hours tending to him and repeatedly assuring him that his wallet, which he left at home, would be there when he returned.
Another man, also a Vietnam vet in his 80s, lay prone under his blanket. When I asked him how he was, he teared up and told me he was fine, that he had survived much worse in the war. I found his wife and she told me he did not want to ask for help getting up from the cot and back into his wheelchair. We got him help right away.
There was a community of people from a residential mental health care facility as well. One woman had disappeared in the night, leaving her wallet, her phone, and her cat. The residents did not know what to do so they said nothing until I walked by and asked how they were. I found volunteers to take care of the cat, and we registered her as missing.
My Job? Psychological First Aid.
Several people have asked me what to do for people in shock and dealing with crisis. There are so many resources of logistical information, for physical help, full of checklists on how to find shelter, how to find rentals, how to call insurance, how to rebuild. But there is very little out there on how to be a good friend, how to help emotionally, how to be present and meet the emotional needs of the people who need help.
Here is a simple checklist for Psychological First Aid (PFA). All of us can do the first 6 steps. Right now, it is important for us to feel empowered, to know what we can do for ourselves and others.
- Contact and Engagement: Compassionate, non-intrusive initiation of support.
- Safety and Comfort: Enhancing physical safety and providing emotional stabilization.
- Stabilization: Calming and orienting individuals who are overwhelmed.
- Information Gathering: Identifying immediate, urgent needs and concerns.
- Practical Assistance: Helping with direct, actionable steps to meet needs.
- Connection with Social Supports: Reconnecting with family, friends, and community resources.
- Information on Coping: Providing psycho-education and basic stress-management strategies.
- Link to Collaborative Services: Connecting individuals to necessary, ongoing care
Even if you live far away, you can do these things. You have the power to make a real difference in the lives of people who are suffering right now. It all starts with checking in.
We can do this together.