HELENA — The Horse Gulch Fire has burned thousands of acres just northeast of Canyon Ferry over the past few days and forced residents and visitors alike to find new places to stay. MTN looked into the options available to these folks who were forced out of their house and homes.
Tammy Hosfield and her partner William Kubu were forced to evacuate their RV space at the Canyon Ferry RV park. They brought their cars, dogs, and camper to their storage facility where they stayed one night. Since then, they’ve been at Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds. But this Sunday, they’re being forced out due to an incoming event. Hosfield’s been through 2 other house fires in the past. Thankfully, her daughter’s friend said they can stay on her property.
“If we couldn't have gotten this out here, I would have lost another home. You know, and it's, it's terrifying. And the fact that somebody had, was willing to reach out to my daughter and say I've got a safe place for your mom to come and stay is just, it's nice to find a community that is willing to reach out and help their neighbors,” says Hosfield.
For hours, Hosfield tried calling hotels to get a room. She only found 2 available: one that was hundreds of dollars per night and another that wouldn’t allow pets, even if left in the car in the parking lot.
“I spent about 2 1/2 hours on the phone calling every motel in town Wednesday night. There wasn't a motel in town to be had,” says Hosfield.
I called around town to see what was available. While I did find some availability, most were hundreds of dollars per night. Many of the hotels have had evacuees call in looking for vacancy, including the Lamplighter Cabins and Suites.
“Constantly, every day, we're getting about 20 to 30 calls to find out if we have vacancy,” says Amy Mclain, General Manager of Lamplighter Cabins and Suites.
Mclain says while their rooms are booked Friday and Saturday evening, there will be vacancies for the week beginning Sunday. They’ve welcomed in a few evacuees over the past few days. They will be offering a 10% discount for those displaced by the fire.
“I'm happy that we're able to accommodate people when they are being displaced from the fire at the moment and it's something that we can do as a community as a whole to be able to help them,” says Mclain.
Steed Industries has also opened its property for temporary storage for those displaced. They’ve also opened up their concert grounds in the North Valley for folks to bring their livestock to. Evacuees can reach out directly to them if interested.
