(FOX40.COM) — Tuolumne County hosted a meeting Monday evening at the Chinese Camp school to discuss fire debris removal efforts. Speakers, including County Supervisor Stephen Griefer and Dore Bietz of the County Office of Emergency Serivices, fielded questions from a standing-room-only crowd.
About 50 homes burned in the TCU September Lightning Complex Fires on September 2.
“Eighty percent of them didn’t have homeowners’ insurance because of the high, exorbitant rates of the insurance,” Griefer said.
Griefer told FOX40 the county received state approval last week for funding to start the recovery process. The county is waiting to hear from FEMA about Federal assistance.
For property-owners without insurance, there are no easy answers. Griefer told the crowd that he is working on trying to change the way insurance is done in California.
“In today’s day and age, regardless of political position or posturing, people don’t have a lot of faith in their government, and we’re here to make sure they know we’re here to work for them,” Griefer said.
Several people at the meeting had questions that that the County is not able to provide. Some are demanding answers from Cal Fire.
“I feel this is a fire that should never have happened,” Cheryl Wainwright said. “I’m totally disappointed that it wasn’t put out sooner, that they waited so late in the day to do something. And by the time they did do something, it was too late.”
Monday’s meeting is one in a series. The conversation will continue in the coming weeks.
Dennis Shanahan
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