'Mom Lost Everything': Homeless Mother and Daughter Recount Time Darlene 3 Was Fired

LA PINE, Ore. (KTVZ) — While the Darlene 3 Fire appears to be 100% contained, everyone affected by the fire has been able to return home. But for one homeless family, everything is gone.

Ivy and Ayla were living in homeless camps near La Pine Cemetery when the fire broke out.

Ayla said Monday: “I called her because I thought she was on fire. She got her stuff and came over to where I was thinking I was on fire. It seemed like it was closer to my house than to me, but I guess it was just between us.”

“Mom lost everything,” she added.

All of Ivy's family photos and valuables burned in the fire.

Ivy said: “We’ve already been struggling to survive for so long. Nobody wants to give us work. In my community, we used to take care of each other. Now they’re just cruel.”

Saint Vincent de Paul Social Services in La Pine provided clothing, sleeping bags and tents to homeless people affected by the fire.

Becca Rohleder, a social services manager, said: “My estimate is that over 100 people were probably displaced by the fire.”

She says St. Vincent is expecting an increase in visitors starting this week as the homeless return to their camps.

Rohleder said: “I really feel like we're pushing these people to live this way. And again, like I said, we're condemning them now. Shame on us.”

Ivy and Ayla say they will try to rebuild in a nearby area, but they say they don't feel welcome in the town of La Pine.

Ivy said: “People need to use common sense and remember that we are just as human as they are. And when people treat us like that, it shows us that they are the inhumane ones. They are the animals, not us.”

So far, the Darlene 3 Fire has cost firefighters nearly $3.5 million to fight, and 300 firefighters remain on the ground. These homeless residents will be allowed back onto BLM land when the area is closed and reopened to the public.