After escaping a fire that destroyed their home at 516 Canal Street, one family faced the overwhelming reality of starting over from nothing. With support from Canal Alliance’s Senior Case Manager Amalia Saborio, neighbors, and community partners, found safety, stability, and hope
When someone began pounding on the door in the early morning hours of August 21 2025, Marta* and her family were inside, sound asleep. At first, they could not understand what was happening outside. After all, it was 5:36 in the morning.
“We thought he was saying ‘Migra,’” Marta* recalled.
Moments later, she realized the danger was something else entirely. Marta’s* family’s apartment building at 516 Canal Street was on fire.
By the time they tried to leave through the front door, flames had already blocked the exit. There was no time to gather belongings or stop to think. The family escaped through the balcony and made their way down through mud and water to safety.
“We lost everything,” Marta* said. “Everything, everything. Passports, documents, family pictures… All gone.”
Before the fire, life had been simple. Marta* lived at 516 Canal Street with her husband, Carlos*, their son, Mateo*, Carlos’ father, Don Ernesto*, and relatives Elena and Raúl. For almost a year, they worked, came home, cooked dinner together, and rested. On weekends, they gathered outside for carne asada. The Canal neighborhood reminded Marta of the town they came from in Guatemala, making it feel familiar and comforting. That sense of normalcy disappeared overnight.
After escaping the fire, Marta* and her family found themselves standing outside soaked, barefoot, cold, and in shock. One of the first things they needed was dry clothing. They needed shoes. Food. A safe place to go. A neighbor helped them by allowing them to bathe in her home and gave them clean clothes while emergency responders secured the area.
Soon after, Marta* remembers being approached by Canal Alliance staff near the scene and being told where they could go for support. They were brought to Pickleweed Park where emergency assistance was being organized. There, with Canal Alliance staff supporting as liaisons between displaced residents and first responders, they received food, clothing, and immediate help during those first chaotic hours after the fire.
For Yuli and her loved ones, what they remember most about that moment was the feeling they were not alone.
“We felt supported,” Elena* said. “We felt like we weren’t going to be left alone and that [Canal Alliance and the first responders] were going to help us.”
Right away, Canal Alliance relocated the family to a hotel while they began the search for a new rental apartment. That is when Senior Case Manager Amalia Saborio entered the lives of Marta and her family.
Amalia, who had supported families after a previous fire in the Canal, understood how to navigate the aftermath of an emergency like this one. The displaced families – over 55 people from 19 units — would need food, clothing, shelter, documents, transportation, and support with housing applications, document replacement, and so much more. Amalia got right to work. She helped Marta’s* family identify immediate needs, search for housing options, and explained difficult rental requirements, documents replacement procedures, and connected them with outside resources as needed along the way. She also helped them face the painful truth that rebuilding after a fire is not only about replacing what was lost. It is about finding safety again.
“My goal was never to simply find Marta* and her family a new rental unit,” said Amalia. “I wanted them to have a home.”
Amalia and the rest of the Social Services team at Canal Alliance did just this. They worked with colleagues, community partners, volunteers, landlords, and the Guatemalan Consulate to help Marta’s* family – and all the displaced families — replace identification documents, apply for housing, and move toward stability.
Trust became part of the recovery. Marta* and her family all shared that the support from Canal Alliance, the Red Cross, and access to mental health services helped them feel accompanied during one of the hardest moments of their lives.
“I feel that maybe we would have recovered,” Marta* said, “but we would not have gotten back on our feet the same way without Canal Alliance.”
Today, the family is living in a new apartment, as are all of the families from the 516 Canal Street fire. And Marta* says they are more comfortable and stable than before. Their new home was furnished through support from Welcoming Home, and the family says the apartment feels warm and welcoming. Mateo* is safe and has space to move. It is not the same home they lost, and they still miss pieces of their old life, especially the balcony where they used to gather for carne asada. But they all agree that their new place has come to feel like a beginning.
For Amalia, seeing Marta* and family safe in their new home matters deeply.
«Marta* and her family are kind, grateful, and so deserving of good things. After walking with them through such a painful chapter, seeing them safe in a home again is part of what makes the work meaningful for me,” she shared. When asked what Canal Alliance meant to them during this stage of their lives, every family member answered with the same word.
“Esperanza,” they said.
Hope.
“Words cannot express what we truly feel in our hearts,” Marta said. “We are very grateful for everything [Canal Alliance and the community] did for us.”
Don Ernesto*, Carlos’* father and Mateo’s* grandfather expressed his gratitude for the people who helped them and reflected on what made recovery possible.
“When people come together, anything is possible.” He said.
That is what Canal Alliance, Amalia, and this community made possible after the fire: not just emergency help, but a path from fear to stability, and from loss to hope.
*Client names have been changed to protect identity.