In 2011 the Slave Lake wildfire destroyed hundreds of homes, and caused a sharp increase in domestic violence as well. Now Fort McMurray could be facing the same trend but the community is better prepared if this happens. Northern Haven Support Society executive director explained that in the Slave Lake case Shelly May Ferguson “We went from 12 calls a month to 24 calls.” Stress, both for financial reasons and caused by events such as the wildfire and forced evacuation, can increase the risk of domestic violence because people may snap under too much pressure. Waypoints is not taking any chances now that people have come back to Fort McMurray, and executive director Michele Taylor told the media that “We’re trying to prevent the increase in first-time domestic violence in homes or intensifying domestic violence in homes.” Unity House is taking proactive steps to ensure that domestic violence does not leave people at risk.

Studies show that after a natural disaster, like the wildfire in Fort McMurray, the rate of domestic violence tends to go up by around 30%. According to Taylor “Alberta has one of the worst track records in terms of domestic violence per capita. People have a hard time processing what 80,000 people just went through. And for some people it leads to domestic violence. It expresses itself emotionally and sometimes it’s six to 12 months after the trauma.” In order to prevent more domestic violence Waypoints is offering counseling at no charge for people who have relationship tension, and the organization has provided Wood Buffalo and Fort McMurray human resource departments with program and services outlines as well.