'It's been a long haul': Las Vegas residents still struggling after wildfires
"The community has been impacted and surrounding communities, as well. I can't begin to tell you the impact it's had," Geri Herrera, a Las Vegas resident and owner of Family Options, said.
"The community has been impacted and surrounding communities, as well. I can't begin to tell you the impact it's had," Geri Herrera, a Las Vegas resident and owner of Family Options, said.
"The community has been impacted and surrounding communities, as well. I can't begin to tell you the impact it's had," Geri Herrera, a Las Vegas resident and owner of Family Options, said.
It's been almost six months since the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon started, yet some residents in Las Vegas are still struggling.
Especially when it comes to business owners.
"It's been a long haul. This community has been through so much, and I want people to understand that it's not just the people on the burn scar that have suffered. The community has suffered as well," Geri Herrera, a Las Vegas resident and owner of Family Options, said.
Like many people in her small community, Herrera has seen firsthand what wildfires can do.
For 20 years, her business has served as a social services agency, where staff provided resources for disabled people. Yet the past few months, have been some of the most difficult times for her.
"Folks were evacuated here to our rehabilitation center, because they were impacted by the smoke and had breathing issues," Herrera said. "So we set up block mattresses, we got groceries and stuff to cook here, and provided support because we were concerned for them."
And the problems don't end there. Currently, her facility is facing challenges with the city's ongoing water crisis and limitations.
"We have to depend on bottled water that the community provides, and so that's an issue. Our folks are down to bathing every other day or every three days to conserve water," Herrera said.
Meanwhile, her home wasn't off limits.
KOAT spoke to Herrera a few months ago, as she and her family prepared for some of the major flooding around the burn scar areas.
She's now one of several people vouching for her community and the resources they still need.
On Monday, she and several other Las Vegas and Mora County residents sat down with Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez (D - New Mexico) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a special roundtable.
"It was an incredible honor, but I also felt like it was the best opportunity I would ever have to express how my community felt and what it went through," Herrera said.
The efforts were all in hopes of getting some help from a proposed Fire Assistance Bill, which would ultimately reimburse victims like her at no expense.
An opportunity Geri says is long overdue.
"There's a lot that we need, and we're a poor community," she said. "A lot of grants require matching funds. We don't have those matching funds, so we need money that does not require matching funds that can come through and help our families, help our businesses, and help our communities."
Lawmakers are hoping to sign the bill into federal law by Sept. 30.