An east Richmond renter is still shaken up a week after a devastating fire took everything from her, including her three cats.
"Get out! Get out! Get out!" was all Arline Trividic and her husband heard when they were woken up shortly after midnight on May 8.
Trividic told the Richmond News she had nothing with her, not even clothes on, when she was only given minutes to leave the burning two-storey house on River Road, near Westminster Highway.
"There was no smoke, the smoke alarms didn't go off at all. Just red hot flames that engulfed the door right after I ran out the door," she said.
"If I had stopped, I would have died."
Trividic, who is also the owner of local business Smell This! Aromatherapy, said she lost her personal and work cellphones, tablet and laptop related to her work on top of years of memorabilia.
What hurts her the most is losing her three precious cats and her 2016 white Nissan 370, all of which are her closest memories of her late mother.
"I lost my three babies, and that has killed me," said Trividic, calling the situation "a nightmare."
The car was the last memento her mom left for her before she passed. She said she will be looking on the market, once everything is settled, for the same car.
"I know it wouldn't be the same car, but I could still look at it and go, 'Hi mom.'"
Community coming together
Trividic said while the house fire incident has been nothing but traumatizing, she has been thankful for her neighbours in Hamilton, Richmond Fire-Rescue, and friends and family who were there the moment she ran out of the house.
Richmond Fire-Rescue firefighters arrived at the scene to a "home fully engulfed in fire," according to assistant deputy chief Trevor Northrup.
He added that emergency programs in situations like Trividic's case initiate emergency support services for displaced occupants with the help of the Red Cross.
"Unfortunately, the home is a complete loss as a result of this fire," said Northrup, adding that an investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
Trividic told the News that neighbours came running to them with clothes and blankets to make sure they were warm while Richmond Fire-Rescue tackled the fire that night.
"People gave us everything they could, and someone with the Richmond fire department instantly called the Red Cross for us," said Trividic.
She and her husband were already set up at a hotel in New Westminster by 3 a.m. with the help of the Red Cross despite being "a walking zombie."
"We're just so thankful and fortunate for our friends and family. Many have dropped off clothes, a new bed and pillows and everything so we don't have to buy it."
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up by Trividic's daughter with a goal of $25,000 to help with daily necessities, including medications, eye glasses, accommodations and other emergency items.
As of May 16, more than $16,000 had been raised.
Starting from scratch
What was supposed to be a year of celebrations, including her husband's birthday and her business' 20th anniversary, Trividic has had to focus on getting new identification cards, a passport, and a cellphone number set up again.
She explained that ICBC employees have been nothing but patient with the process of getting her driver's licence and health cards replaced.
But the most frustrating part for Trividic has been setting up her phone number.
"We all use our cellphones for everything, and what I did was I used my cellphone for my verification codes. Now that I've lost my phone, I'm screwed," she said.
Trividic explained that she cannot get her business contacts and records, all due to the fact that her phone was the sole place she could verify her identity when logging into accounts.
She attempted to show the employees of her cellphone provider a photo of her passport that her daughter had on hand, but they considered it a "fraud" as it's not the physical passport.
"This is strangling me. It's holding me and tying my hands, and I can't get my life back, and I can't do my business," said Trividic.
"Banking is far more important than a phone, and (the bank) gave me my stuff after a lot of questions, which I understand.
"I've already lost everything, and now I feel like I'm being put through more grief."
She is taking this as a learning moment and reminding others to look at different ways of verification.
"Maybe have two different places for verifications. Make sure you have options."
Re-connecting with clients
Losing her work laptop and tablet has been a week-long nightmare for Trividic.
She has been "stressed" that her clients might think she "fell off the face of the earth" randomly, and is hoping to somehow connect with them.
Until she has access to her business phone number again, Trividic is in limbo and is relying on Google searching for her bigger clients, but is at a loss for how to reach others.
"If they could come and paste an envelope on my door saying this is my contact information, that would help me so much," she said.
"I want to try and at least tell them I'm OK. The business is OK."
Trividic is suggesting people try to reach her by email, [email protected], or leave a note at #130 - 15100 Knox Way.
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