My province has been through several catastrophic fire seasons in recent years, and one of the things I think people underestimate is how long you could be without a home for, and how many other people are going to require help. Entire towns have been evacuated that have, years later, yet to be fully rebuilt. In the days following evacuation orders, people filled shelters to capacity (and subsequently fell ill because of how quickly stomach bugs and the like go around crowded places.) Aid was offered by the government and the Red Cross, but the lineups were long to get registration done, and if you weren't early on the list of applicants, delivery was often very late.

The people that were the most comfortable by far were the ones with a quick and ready getaway plan, who either got to the lineups fastest or got good camping spots early. They were able to remain close by for damage assesments and the like, even if they were technically more remote than people in shelters in another nearby town, and didn't have to wait for a cheque to come in to help them afford to replace basic necessities like food and the cookware to make it in. Many of them lived in their travel trailers or at planned BOL's while they worked out where to go next or waited for their homes to be rebuilt. People without those plans and skills competed for rentals in an already-tight market while being out of work because their workplaces burnt down. Those good at foraging helped make ends meet despite that by not relying on the grocery store so much.

Heck, even in England in WWII, people who could get out to the country and forage wood, food, and other necessities were better off than most other people on rations.