Payday (2016–…): Season 1, Episode 6 - Fort McMurray - full transcript
A massive wildfire impacts the lives of an oil worker, a dog sledder, an exotic dancer, and a boxer in the Northern oil patch of Fort McMurray.
If you're already
south and you're past
the highway, then
obviously keep going.
If you're past where the
fire was, keep going south.
Holy ****!
Here we are,
leaving the roundabout.
Getting out
of town just in time.
Getting the fuck out of dodge.
Fort McMurray
is Canada's oil town.
A devastating fire
forces 80,000 citizens
to flee for their lives.
Do not go south.
Go north at this point, then.
Please, go north.
Turn around
at any chance you can.
Oh my god...
It once was a boom
town, but oil prices collapsed
and its economy tanked.
These four people are
staying through the tough times,
hoping that the
money will return.
Oh, I love this place, man.
Feeds us, we're all
here for a reason.
There's so many jobs and you're
gonna make so much money here.
Not happening like that anymore.
So my dogs are my life,
but I worry about
money, all the time.
When I quit work, I was
making 35 bucks an hour,
but I had like
barely any time to train.
You know, I want to win
this fight more than anything.
One city, four people,
and where they live is a
key part of who they are.
* I found a place
to sell my name *
* Along the market's promenade
* High prices
*
* Going down
* Oh the rice is burning brown
* And high prices
* Going down
*
Fort McMurray sits
in northern Canada,
500 miles south of
the Arctic Circle.
It's surrounded by nothing but
thousands of square miles of
trees and frozen oily sand.
When the price of oil is high,
those oil sands turn to money,
and new workers
arrive in a constant flow.
On a slow day, it still ships
a million barrels of oil a day
to the States.
Here, the pickup truck is king,
and a starting trade job can
earn you over $100,000 a year.
But its remoteness means
housing and food cost a fortune.
In 2009, the world oil
price began to drop,
and the oil boom slowed.
Layoffs began, and local
businesses started to close.
Those still here are
hoping to ride out the slump.
Just going out to
fire up the beast.
Little cold out here, so want
to make sure I got a warm ass,
that's for damn sure.
Tony Jorge, aka TJ,
is an oil worker.
He came here for the long haul.
I am 33 years old.
I make approximately
150 to 200,000 gross,
and I... I live in a trailer.
Well, this is my
last day at work.
This is only day nine,
which actually isn't that bad.
Twelve-hour days are a
little brutal on ya, but...
Oh well, at least I
get a few days off.
What can I say?
Work, work, and work.
My name's Tony Jorge.
I work out in the oil fields,
and I'm on my way to work
on a crisp Tuesday morning.
Minus 11 out.
*
I've been in Fort Mac
almost two years now.
I have a lot of family that
works up in the oil patch.
They've all done
well for themselves.
My dad kept bugging
me to come out here,
and coming out here,
and it - you know,
there's lots of work, and
I thought let's try it.
You know, let's -
no guts, no glory.
So I flew out here and don't
regret one minute of it.
- What's that?
- See the glow?
What's the glow from?
Uh, the flare stacks.
You'll go down there,
and some of the smells,
I mean, I love 'em.
Ah, you can smell
the money today.
We're just pulling
into the plant now.
Another beautiful day.
Another day, another dollar.
On average per week,
I make 2,000, take home.
I am currently
looking to get a house.
They're doing layoffs and not
everybody's working as good
hours as they would like,
but everybody's surviving.
Right now everyone's just
gotta hang on to what they got
and ride it out 'til the end.
*
The oil patch is male-dominated.
There are over 5,000 more
men in Fort Mac than women.
Exotic dancer Jessica followed
the money here 18 months ago.
I came here in the beginning
of the oil prices dropping,
and I even remember my
mom saying, she's like,
"You better not go
to Fort McMurray.
The oil's dropping up there."
It's not usually
paycheque to paycheque,
but it does depend on
how much I work, right?
*
You can have guys
that are lawyers,
you can have guys that
are construction workers.
There's no set clientele.
It still is a
business transaction.
My name's Jessica.
My stage name is Melani Lyanna.
I work full-time as a
stripper, exotic dancer.
*
Most exotic dancers travel
from city to city on a circuit.
Jessica rents in town, and is
the only full-time exotic dancer
in Fort Mac.
I started dancing when I was 19.
I had friends that did it.
They all had nice apartments,
nice cars, nice clothes.
You get to make good
money and have fun.
*
Hey, can I get
20 loonies, please?
Do you want a roll for 25?
I was in a
really bad relationship.
Basically I just picked up
my money and packed up my car
with all my stuff and just
left that abusive relationship.
At the time, I didn't actually
have enough money to get
my license to dance in Edmonton,
so I came to Fort McMurray
'cause they'd let me
freelance without my license.
*
I like dancing.
I really think it's empowering.
You're kind of in control of
the crowd for that 20 minutes
or however long
you're on stage for.
- Hello!
- Hello, how are you?
- Good, how are you?
- Alright.
I just like the freedom,
making your own hours,
making your own money,
kind of being in control of
your own destiny,
I guess, so to say.
*
A few years ago, a lot
of disposable income
floated around town.
Cocaine usage was four
times the national average.
Blake came to Fort
McMurray with his family
for work 8 years ago.
He recently quit his high-paying
job as an auto mechanic
when he got caught up in
the excesses of the oil boom.
Now he lives with his
parents, and he owes them money.
I don't think money
necessarily determines
whether you're happy or not.
That definitely
didn't make me happy.
In Fort McMurray,
I'm not gonna lie,
I mean, there is
drugs and stuff here.
I mean, I'm not perfect.
I've had problems with like...
with like doing stuff like that.
Blake hopes that boxing
will give him a new focus
and a source of income.
As soon as I started boxing,
I fell in love with it.
Again!
Two more, come on.
One more.
Move your head a little
bit on the second shot.
I love the competition,
like, how good it feels,
and have a wicked fight and
win, and people are just pumped.
Combo again, right away.
It's like a adrenaline rush.
*
It's real to me, and
it makes sense, I guess.
Sit down on a
couple body shots, hard.
There you go.
Move this way.
Good. Nice work.
I was working as a
automotive mechanic.
Twelve-hour days,
12 days in a row.
It takes its toll on you.
When I quit, I was
making 35 bucks an hour.
The next fight is a
shot at the national team.
You win westerns and you
get to go to nationals.
There is no backup plan,
boxing's what I wanna do.
It's what I love, it's my life.
In Fort McMurray, the winter
sun sets before 4:00pm.
It's getting dark when Christina
finishes her office job.
Every afternoon, she then
drives out of the city
to feed her dog sled
team by flashlight.
Racing dogs is her passion.
Now it's time to do
the evening routine,
which is feeding the dogs.
So they get kibble, water, clean
up poop, all the fun stuff.
I'll start with Flo.
Hi, Flo.
You're okay.
You want your supper?
You already ate!
Do I have savings? No.
I do have debt.
My investment is my dogs.
Hey, Hanky.
Hi, hi.
Hi, Darlette!
Where's your poop?
I live at home.
It's like treasure hunting.
I work at a real estate office.
I make around $40,000 a year.
And I spend that, if not
more, on dogs and gear.
It's really important to make
sure that when you have puppies,
they're well socialized.
Dogs shouldn't be
fearful of people.
They should be
happy and give kisses.
Thank you.
There are worries about me
being able to fund my sled dogs.
If I don't have enough
money to support my dogs,
I'm going to have to
find homes for them.
That's one of the most
stressful things about this.
How are ya?
Not bad, how you guys doing?
Oh, not too bad.
This is Centennial RV Park.
This is where we
live at the moment.
In remote Fort McMurray, Canada,
wages are high to
attract oil field workers.
But the costs of
living is high, too.
A middle class house
costs about $600,000,
and that's if you can find one.
A housing shortage means
that many well-paid workers
can't find homes.
It costs TJ over $1,000 a month
just for a trailer hook up.
This is my place here.
This is lot #9.
As you see, I
fully enclosed it in.
Framed it all,
insulation, vapour barrier,
bubble wrapped it so it
looks like a spaceship.
I bought the trailer for 3,000,
and I think the appraisal
I got on it was almost 11.
Basically the only fees in
the park are your pad fee:
1,390 a month, which
includes your sewer hookup,
your water, and
your electricity.
Back here I actually made myself
a redneck urinal, as I call it.
So any time that you
need to go take a leak,
she's free flow, bud.
I hardly spend anything.
The wife pretty much
takes care of most of that.
You know, the bills are
paid and whatnot 'cause
she makes enough
out of her own money.
This is the master.
It's where all the,
uh, magic happens.
The kitchen.
I guess you would say
it's, uh, "open concept".
Lots of bacon
and meat and shit like that
'cause, well, it's
important to make sure
you eat lots of meat
and shit like that.
There's a lot of people in this
park that make a lot more
than me and still
live in a trailer.
*
Blake's trying to make
the national boxing team,
and get the monthly training
allowance that goes with it.
He owes his parents
a few thousand dollars
and can't ask them for more.
My parents helped me out a lot
here when I quit and everything.
I mean, they helped me out when
I was - I was kind of in a bind,
and yeah, I borrowed
money off them, for sure.
Well, I'm definitely gonna
fix up my truck and sell it.
Think I would
probably get like...
maybe 4 or $5,000
for it, I think.
I hope.
So yeah, that would
definitely help out.
Support from the
national team is $900 a month,
to help you with
training and that.
So yeah, that would
definitely, definitely help.
Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam,
bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam...
Put this one on the bottom
and put this one top of it.
It's probably been a little
tough for my parents and stuff.
I mean, I've been living here
the last few months without...
being able to really
help them out very much.
They know what I'm trying to do,
and they know that I'm
putting my heart into it.
They know that
I'm gonna give back.
*
Fort Mac had two strip clubs.
With the economy
depressed, now there's only one.
Jessica still has to maintain
her looks, so to save money,
she buys hair extensions from a
friend who has a home business.
- Hey, how are you?
- Good, good, what's up?
Not much.
Kind of late for
your appointment.
You are getting...
I'm always late, what can I say?
All my costumes, all
my hair and my makeup,
that's all out of
pocket expenses.
Guess what,
I have for you more of your...
your colour that came in.
Jay! Bring the hair, okay.
If you have some - a little
bit of dough, what I will do is
you can bring it and
we just take it out,
and this is all ready.
Oh nice, yeah.
I'll bring the
other stuff, for sure.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
My hair, my body, I have to
try to keep really good care of
yourself to be in
this kind of industry.
I got my boobs done in Bangkok.
It ended up being
$2,300 instead of 10 grand,
which it would have been here.
So how is work?
Um, work's alright.
I mean, like
everything else here,
it's kind of been
slowing down, definitely.
A lot of people have
lost jobs here recently.
You go to work, like,
"We don't need you today."
Yeah.
No, I know, a lot of
customers at work,
they got like a layoff order
that as soon as like
after they go back
from Christmas break,
they have no work
to come back to.
Oh, Jesus.
So I guess it's better
to know before Christmas
and before you spend all your
money on Christmas presents
and come back to no job.
At least this way
you kind of know first.
How is it looking?
Looks good.
Then you can give me
just a tip, it's okay.
- Thank you so much.
- Alright, alright.
Christina makes
just $40,000 a year,
but spends more
than that on her dogs.
Dog race competition costs
will push the bill even higher.
Because the dogs
are really strong,
I have to secure
the quad to my truck,
or else they'll take off
with the quad and without me.
My sled was $5,000,
lines were 640,
harnesses are closer to
2,000, collars are $500 a year.
And now I'll start
taking out the dogs.
Good girl.
Dog houses are $125 each,
so each dog getting one
costs me almost $4,000.
So in dog food alone, it would
cost about 18 grand per year,
just for dog food.
Right now I'm training
for the Canadian Challenge.
This race is gonna cost
between 10 and 15 grand.
Hi, Flo!
Are you a good girl?
She's my little girl,
she's my little girl.
Yes, my little girl.
Winnings from races don't
cover the cost of competing.
She'll have to
fundraise it all herself
through local sponsorship.
It's a lot of work just to spend
four days alone with her team.
I'm known as the crazy dog lady.
*
Hey!
Hey!
*
I attempted the Yukon Quest,
which is known as the hardest
dog sled race in the world.
*
It had to be at least four
or five days into the race
when I caught the Norwalk Virus.
I was weak and I
was dizzy, and...
I was like, you know, I should
pull over 'cause if I pass out,
the dogs are just
gonna leave me behind.
'Cause that's what they do,
they've got a one-track mind.
And as I was thinking that,
that's all I remember,
is waking up in a snow bank,
crawling on the ground.
I shine my light down the trail.
My lead dog was sitting
and staring at me like,
"Don't worry, I got your back."
Well, we had a really
good day of training today,
especially with
all this fresh snow.
So they deserve to eat
like kings and queens tonight.
In order for me to go to
competitions and races,
I do need to fundraise.
There you go, Darlette.
Fort McMurray allows me
to do my dog sledding.
I'm not too sure that I
could do it anywhere else.
Without the sponsorships, I
wouldn't be able to afford...
to do this.
I would have - you
know, I'd be broke.
So everyone kind of in
the industry relies on tips.
They're always kind of
what you're counting on
to make extra money.
If it's a busy night,
you can make hundreds
of dollars in tips.
No matter
how small the crowd is,
the strip club gets 18 of
every $30 Jessica makes.
It was kind of a bit of
a slower night tonight,
so I made...
380 for the night.
Being onstage, you want to
try to make at least 500 bucks,
but it's alright, I
guess it is what it is.
The low price of oil is
killing jobs in Fort McMurray.
There's less disposable income
in town, and everybody feels it.
I rent a room in a house.
There's a couple other
people that live here.
Usually people rent a
place in here by the week.
They're usually doing shift work
up in camp and have a week off,
and they don't want to go home,
so people just come
and go from here.
I pay about $1,000
a month rent here,
just for a one bedroom place.
Just one bedroom in a place,
not even a one-bedroom place.
Jessica used to be able
to afford frequent trips.
Look for a good
vacation thing on there.
I want to click on the
hotel and look at it.
My boyfriend's name is Skylar,
and we've been together for
probably eight months now.
Work has been very slow for
Jess in Fort Mac, and there was
a point where during the summer
where I needed to be financially
supported, and she
helped out a lot with that.
I would have
literally gone homeless
if it wasn't for her, so...
When I got here, I was looking
to get a job on the mine sites
where you can make big money.
Those jobs just weren't hiring.
At one point in time,
this was a huge boom town.
There's obviously gonna be a
smaller percentage of people who
wanna go spend on strippers
and stuff like that, and...
There just isn't that money
in Fort McMurray anymore.
Can you see what vacations
they have for the third?
But I don't know, like...
I don't think you
can go that far.
Right now, for me to be happy,
I'd definitely like to take
a vacation, try to get
away from everything.
Just kind of leave all
the troubles behind.
Definitely I feel like
that's the best kind of therapy.
They don't give
you the full price.
I want that really
nice one that we had.
*
You gonna go do a snow angel?
With a young family,
TJ wants to transition
from transient worker
to Fort Mac citizen.
You're supposed to go backwards!
Now that we both know that this
is where we're gonna be staying
for a while, I think it's time
to actually start
looking for a house.
You're supposed to go backwards!
Agh!
Look at the war face you got.
Having a kid was one of
the best days of my life.
I was ecstatic.
That's where Tony Jr.
came in, or T3,
'cause he'd be Tony the Third.
Ah, first time home buyer, so
it would be 5% down payment.
So $500,000 house, you're
looking at, what, 25,000?
And I probably have
30,000 in the bank.
So I'm not gonna
have any problem
coming up with the
down payment for it.
Working around his
training schedule,
Blake has taken a part-time
night shift job so he can start
to pay back his parents who
have been supporting him.
It's definitely a lot
harder to find work now
than it was a year
or two years ago.
I'm not sure exactly
how much I'll be making,
but it'll probably be
around 20 bucks an hour.
I wash the under carriage
of site trucks and like
trucks that are in the
mine and stuff like that.
Pretty dirty, and it's
not really my dream job,
but I mean, I'm thankful
for any kind of work right now.
I mean, I need
money and I'm broke.
Ideally I'd work with my trades.
Hopefully I can pay
my dad back right away.
*
Probably be laughing at me,
saying that I'm gonna pay him
back or whatever, but...
but I am gonna pay him back,
and this is definitely a start.
*
Still gotta find
time to train and stuff,
so I mean, that's
definitely hard.
Can't have your
cake and eat it too.
I mean, it'd be
nice to try, I guess.
Blake's job will take
some financial pressure
off his parents.
TJ's dad is traveling
to an oil camp
four hours south
of Fort Mac for work.
I'm just gonna go shoot the
shit, have a couple beers,
and hang out in
the trailer park.
Where does he live?
Right around the corner!
Let's go!
The old man there, he's getting
ready to head up to Red Water.
Lotta different
companies out there,
and it's supposed to
be a couple year job.
There's a lot of things in the
oil business that you can hate,
and a lot of
things you can love.
It's been very, very good to
me, very good to my family.
But right now,
people ain't working.
You look around
this trailer park.
We are lucky enough to keep
working because right now,
there ain't no goddamn work.
None.
Come on out and see the bike.
This is a piece of fucking art.
This is a 1973 Shovelhead,
which is about as rare
as fucking hen's teeth.
They're sending me
to go do a job,
but my family is here.
And when you leave,
you fucking hate to leave
because you lose them friends.
Living up here in
the fucking oil sands,
it is what it is.
You wanna go have
a beer, or what?
- Fucking right, I'm gonna piss.
- The fuck's going on?
Oh, my dick's about
ready to fall off.
You are one fucked up individ--
Holy fuck, there's a whole
crew of 'em, for fuck sakes.
*
*
*
You're killing me!
Guys, I'm getting drunk,
and I made up a fucking tune.
Beautiful.
It's not always
the things you have
that make you happy, right?
It's being around good
people, good friends,
you know, stuff like that.
Don't kiss me!
Fuck you!
*
With a reduced income,
lake relies on the kindness
of his coach, who owns the only
professional gym in Fort Mac.
Go, go, go.
My coach is Cory Pie.
He doesn't really charge me.
Pretty much any time
I'll call him and be like,
"Hey, are you busy or whatever,
do you want to train?"
He'll be like, "Yep."
I've known Blake
for seven years,
I'm pretty sure it is.
Since he was like 15 years old.
Turn more, Blake, turn.
Angles, turn, that's it.
Pivot, lots of pivot, pivot.
For boxing, the most important
thing is to be able to show up
all the time and
put the work in.
That's it, keep
moving, keep moving.
And that's what I see
that's special about Blake.
If he says he's gonna
be here, he's here.
The fight's this weekend.
The idea for the fight is I
want you in the guy's face.
So you should
always be almost in
the range of my
punches, alright?
Alright.
There you go,
right off the track.
Keep working that angle,
keep working that angle.
It is expensive at the amateur
level to train and complete,
mostly 'cause we have to travel.
It's Fort McMurray, we're five
hours north of everybody,
so we need to travel
almost every time,
and usually we have
to stay the night.
Blake's biggest goal would
be to win this weekend here,
coming up, which is the
Western Canadian Championships,
and to go to nationals.
And then after that you're
on the national team, right?
And that's hopefully a run
for the Olympics at that point.
Five seconds.
Time.
I definitely believe Blake
has what it takes to get to
the national team, and
this is his opportunity
to bust onto the scene
now and make a splash.
Because of the oil slump, an
average Fort McMurray house
costs $100,000 less.
TJ is looking at buying a house
that still costs over
half a million dollars.
He thinks it's a bargain.
All the rent prices
are coming down.
I think last time
I heard on the news,
they were saying that
40% of the rentals are vacant.
It's not a bad thing.
I mean, the people that decide
to stay here for a living,
it's great... great for us.
Alright, so 539-9, that's
the asking price on this one.
So you do much cooking or what?
Me?
Do I look like a guy that cooks?
When it's my night to
cook, it's Burger King.
Real estate is a little
bit more expensive here
'cause there's not
a lot of area.
You know, people are
making more money,
but it's all in perspective.
What are these going for?
Uh, 699.
Yeah.
That actually doesn't seem
too bad compared to what it...
probably would have been
when I first came out here.
Oh yeah, yeah.
The oil patch has
been great to me,
my family, and lots
of other families.
I plan on staying out
here for a long time.
Fort McMurray's massive
real estate boom is over.
Lots of sellers, few buyers.
Christina's dog operation
depends on her job
at the realty office
where her mom works.
This printer's
very temperamental.
I would prefer not to use
this machine and its attitude.
I work at a real estate office
called Sutton Group
Fort McMurray.
I do the social media, I put
up signs, measurements.
Ah!
I got my real estate
license to help my mom,
because at the time the market
was really, really busy.
Well, how do I get
out of that now?
- Terry, are you printing?
- No.
- It just delayed then?
- You did it!
I didn't even hit print yet.
On Friday I found out that
my hours were being reduced.
I now only work
four days a week.
I lost about $200
off each pay cheque,
which makes a huge
impact on what I can afford.
That'll cover some of my
bills, mostly dog stuff.
*
I have to make a decision
on: do I try and find
a part-time job, or do I make
cutbacks at the dog lot,
and try to find homes
for some of the dogs?
*
It's a 300-mile bus ride
from Fort McMurray to Edmonton.
Jessica needs to work there
to pay bills back in Fort Mac.
The $300 trip takes a big bite
out of what she's gonna make.
*
I'm just at the hotel.
I'm just gonna go see one
of my friends from Edmonton,
just to go do a
private dance for him.
Probably make
about $600 from him,
and it's for an
hour of a private dance.
He would spend that much
and more at the club anyways,
so having me come
do a private dance,
have a couple drinks with him,
he's definitely more
than okay to pay that.
*
I wouldn't want to be dancing
any later than 33 at the most
for me 'cause that's when I'd
be wanting to start a family.
*
I wouldn't mind being a
stay-at-home mom, but I'd also
like to go travel around and
see what else is out there.
*
I'd like to get all the stuff
I want to get done out of
the way so I can put my whole
effort towards my children.
*
The cost of coming to
Edmonton was just roughly $300,
but I made $600, so
it's definitely worth it.
*
Christina's real estate job
dropped from 40
to 30 hours a week.
A warm winter with little
snowfall has been bad news
for dog sled racers as well.
The dog sled race we were
training for all season
got canceled because of the
abnormally warm temperatures.
We kind of stopped our
fundraising for the year
just 'cause it didn't feel
right asking for donations
when we weren't
going to any races.
To help pay for some of the
costs, we're doing tours.
It's a good way to help
pay for the dog supplies,
and stuff like that.
Hi, buddy!
Hi!
Hello! Hi!
Do you want the goggles, or...?
- It doesn't matter.
- Either way.
Do you want me
to take the goggles
and use the safety glasses?
Sure.
- You guys ready?
- We're ready!
Alright!
A half-hour dog sled
ride is $125 a person.
I didn't get into dog sledding
to make money off of my dogs,
but if I can make money to
provide things for my dogs,
then that would be great.
Hopefully by the summer
oil prices will go up,
and things can
get back to normal.
I'm pretty optimistic
I'll get my hours back.
I do believe I
have a future here.
Fort McMurray is my home,
and I couldn't see
myself anywhere else.
Blake is in Vancouver
to fight for a shot
on the National Boxing Team.
If he wins, he'll
receive funding for training.
The trip cost over $1,000,
money he doesn't have.
What's your club called?
Uh, Sweet Times Boxing,
in Fort McMurray Alberta.
This is the first,
like, big competition
that I've really
been in, so it's...
quite a bit on the line.
63.5, thank you.
So do you have
any health problems
that I need to know about?
Ah, no.
if I had all the money
in the world right now,
my coach would be here,
he'd be here for sure.
I never really fought
without him before,
but I mean, it'll be fine.
Like, we did all
the work in the gym,
so I know what I gotta
do, and we're ready.
And representing Alberta...
Bbblake...
McPhee!
Box!
Stop!
Just hesitate a little longer,
and you're gonna get in
a little closer, okay?
Hit him and then off
to the side, alright?
*
Good fight, man.
*
Tough fight.
It's not that bad, but...
it's frustrating though.
Way she goes, I suppose.
Blake will not get a
shot at the national team,
but TJ is optimistic
that his family
will finally have a real home.
Here's a couple of the
places that I looked at.
They range from about 650,000.
Pricey.
It's about what I figured.
The amount of houses coming up,
it might be the best bet just to
wait her out and keep looking
and see if something comes up.
Yes, dear.
I could carry the $3,000 a
month mortgage, if I wanted to.
Whether I'm willing
to, I don't know.
I might sacrifice something
a little bit less 'cause
to be honest, I didn't
want to spend that.
Lovely wife got me
some beers ready
'cause she knows I'm always
out on a tour somewhere.
So let's... let's go
see what we can get into.
Oh, there's a campfire going.
See, now I feel like we match.
I like Fort Mac, I do.
I really love Fort Mac.
I don't worry about buying
a place in Fort McMurray,
thinking that it's gonna
crash or anything
because it will recover.
It always has.
This place will never
turn into a ghost town.
*
Two months after filming,
wildfires engulf Fort McMurray.
Well, here we are
leaving the roundabout.
Getting out of
town just in time.
Getting the fuck out of dodge.
I can feel the heat.
It forced the emergency
evacuation of the entire city.
80,000 people scrambled onto
a single highway to escape.
Oh my god...
*
The fire raged
for three days in May 2016,
burning 2,400 houses, closing
six major oil sands operations.
It was so big they
called it "the beast".
There were no casualties,
but with damage of $3.6 billion,
it was the costliest natural
disaster in Canadian history.
No one was allowed to return to
Fort McMurray for over a month.
I don't even know if
I want to go in there.
Christina escaped
with all her dogs.
This is her first time
back to the kennel.
It doesn't look bad,
but it doesn't...
definitely doesn't look good.
*
Oh, wow.
That's where the cabin was.
My dogs right now
are kind of scattered.
The community's
really helped out.
I lost, you know, my cabin
that we had just built,
which was also
full of our tools,
mushing gear, harnesses, lines.
I lost my Skidoo.
Um...
And of course, I don't...
have insurance out here, and...
You know, you don't realize
how expensive this sport is
until you have to start
replacing everything.
But it's just...
I told myself I
wasn't gonna cry.
It's just really hard
not to have my dogs around.
*
Jessica left town a
month before the fire.
I'm in Edmonton,
Alberta right now,
bartending at a
gentlemen's club downtown.
When I left Fort McMurray,
the club was really
slow at the time.
My ex-boyfriend, Skylar,
couldn't find a job.
So it was really
not feasible for me
to stay in Fort
McMurray anymore.
It's been very stressful,
but I feel that the industry
that I'm in has got you to
become a stronger person.
I know that I'm the only
that I have to depend on,
so I've got to pick myself
up and keep going again.
During the evacuation,
Blake stayed with a
friend in Edmonton.
Since the fire
I've had four fights.
I won three out of four of them.
I got to train with
some great fighters.
When I'm 40, I'm not
gonna be able to box,
I'm still gonna
be working though.
I don't know, I feel like
I'd be wasting my time
if I wasn't training and
getting ready to fight.
TJ and his dad return
home for the first time.
Everything they own, including
his father's beloved Harley,
is destroyed.
If the fire did not happen,
I would have stayed
in Fort McMurray for good.
My dad would've stayed
up there, all of us,
but right now it's...
it's almost willing
just to pack 'er on up
and, you know, go somewhere
you can make half the wage
and pay half the bills.
You know, I can make that
sacrifice, it don't bother me.
Even though TJ's
trailer was destroyed,
his financial losses
could've been greater
if he had purchased a house.
There's a lot,
lot of... emotions.
I don't know.
Stop.
*
I can only guess what's
gonna happen in the future.
You know, it's just like
winning the lottery:
you don't know
'til you hit it, right?
It's just shit luck.
Fort Mac is on the mend.
It always comes back.
Of four people, Christina
and Blake will recover,
and Jessica and
TJ have moved on.
Chances are they'll return
when the next boom hits.
*
south and you're past
the highway, then
obviously keep going.
If you're past where the
fire was, keep going south.
Holy ****!
Here we are,
leaving the roundabout.
Getting out
of town just in time.
Getting the fuck out of dodge.
Fort McMurray
is Canada's oil town.
A devastating fire
forces 80,000 citizens
to flee for their lives.
Do not go south.
Go north at this point, then.
Please, go north.
Turn around
at any chance you can.
Oh my god...
It once was a boom
town, but oil prices collapsed
and its economy tanked.
These four people are
staying through the tough times,
hoping that the
money will return.
Oh, I love this place, man.
Feeds us, we're all
here for a reason.
There's so many jobs and you're
gonna make so much money here.
Not happening like that anymore.
So my dogs are my life,
but I worry about
money, all the time.
When I quit work, I was
making 35 bucks an hour,
but I had like
barely any time to train.
You know, I want to win
this fight more than anything.
One city, four people,
and where they live is a
key part of who they are.
* I found a place
to sell my name *
* Along the market's promenade
* High prices
*
* Going down
* Oh the rice is burning brown
* And high prices
* Going down
*
Fort McMurray sits
in northern Canada,
500 miles south of
the Arctic Circle.
It's surrounded by nothing but
thousands of square miles of
trees and frozen oily sand.
When the price of oil is high,
those oil sands turn to money,
and new workers
arrive in a constant flow.
On a slow day, it still ships
a million barrels of oil a day
to the States.
Here, the pickup truck is king,
and a starting trade job can
earn you over $100,000 a year.
But its remoteness means
housing and food cost a fortune.
In 2009, the world oil
price began to drop,
and the oil boom slowed.
Layoffs began, and local
businesses started to close.
Those still here are
hoping to ride out the slump.
Just going out to
fire up the beast.
Little cold out here, so want
to make sure I got a warm ass,
that's for damn sure.
Tony Jorge, aka TJ,
is an oil worker.
He came here for the long haul.
I am 33 years old.
I make approximately
150 to 200,000 gross,
and I... I live in a trailer.
Well, this is my
last day at work.
This is only day nine,
which actually isn't that bad.
Twelve-hour days are a
little brutal on ya, but...
Oh well, at least I
get a few days off.
What can I say?
Work, work, and work.
My name's Tony Jorge.
I work out in the oil fields,
and I'm on my way to work
on a crisp Tuesday morning.
Minus 11 out.
*
I've been in Fort Mac
almost two years now.
I have a lot of family that
works up in the oil patch.
They've all done
well for themselves.
My dad kept bugging
me to come out here,
and coming out here,
and it - you know,
there's lots of work, and
I thought let's try it.
You know, let's -
no guts, no glory.
So I flew out here and don't
regret one minute of it.
- What's that?
- See the glow?
What's the glow from?
Uh, the flare stacks.
You'll go down there,
and some of the smells,
I mean, I love 'em.
Ah, you can smell
the money today.
We're just pulling
into the plant now.
Another beautiful day.
Another day, another dollar.
On average per week,
I make 2,000, take home.
I am currently
looking to get a house.
They're doing layoffs and not
everybody's working as good
hours as they would like,
but everybody's surviving.
Right now everyone's just
gotta hang on to what they got
and ride it out 'til the end.
*
The oil patch is male-dominated.
There are over 5,000 more
men in Fort Mac than women.
Exotic dancer Jessica followed
the money here 18 months ago.
I came here in the beginning
of the oil prices dropping,
and I even remember my
mom saying, she's like,
"You better not go
to Fort McMurray.
The oil's dropping up there."
It's not usually
paycheque to paycheque,
but it does depend on
how much I work, right?
*
You can have guys
that are lawyers,
you can have guys that
are construction workers.
There's no set clientele.
It still is a
business transaction.
My name's Jessica.
My stage name is Melani Lyanna.
I work full-time as a
stripper, exotic dancer.
*
Most exotic dancers travel
from city to city on a circuit.
Jessica rents in town, and is
the only full-time exotic dancer
in Fort Mac.
I started dancing when I was 19.
I had friends that did it.
They all had nice apartments,
nice cars, nice clothes.
You get to make good
money and have fun.
*
Hey, can I get
20 loonies, please?
Do you want a roll for 25?
I was in a
really bad relationship.
Basically I just picked up
my money and packed up my car
with all my stuff and just
left that abusive relationship.
At the time, I didn't actually
have enough money to get
my license to dance in Edmonton,
so I came to Fort McMurray
'cause they'd let me
freelance without my license.
*
I like dancing.
I really think it's empowering.
You're kind of in control of
the crowd for that 20 minutes
or however long
you're on stage for.
- Hello!
- Hello, how are you?
- Good, how are you?
- Alright.
I just like the freedom,
making your own hours,
making your own money,
kind of being in control of
your own destiny,
I guess, so to say.
*
A few years ago, a lot
of disposable income
floated around town.
Cocaine usage was four
times the national average.
Blake came to Fort
McMurray with his family
for work 8 years ago.
He recently quit his high-paying
job as an auto mechanic
when he got caught up in
the excesses of the oil boom.
Now he lives with his
parents, and he owes them money.
I don't think money
necessarily determines
whether you're happy or not.
That definitely
didn't make me happy.
In Fort McMurray,
I'm not gonna lie,
I mean, there is
drugs and stuff here.
I mean, I'm not perfect.
I've had problems with like...
with like doing stuff like that.
Blake hopes that boxing
will give him a new focus
and a source of income.
As soon as I started boxing,
I fell in love with it.
Again!
Two more, come on.
One more.
Move your head a little
bit on the second shot.
I love the competition,
like, how good it feels,
and have a wicked fight and
win, and people are just pumped.
Combo again, right away.
It's like a adrenaline rush.
*
It's real to me, and
it makes sense, I guess.
Sit down on a
couple body shots, hard.
There you go.
Move this way.
Good. Nice work.
I was working as a
automotive mechanic.
Twelve-hour days,
12 days in a row.
It takes its toll on you.
When I quit, I was
making 35 bucks an hour.
The next fight is a
shot at the national team.
You win westerns and you
get to go to nationals.
There is no backup plan,
boxing's what I wanna do.
It's what I love, it's my life.
In Fort McMurray, the winter
sun sets before 4:00pm.
It's getting dark when Christina
finishes her office job.
Every afternoon, she then
drives out of the city
to feed her dog sled
team by flashlight.
Racing dogs is her passion.
Now it's time to do
the evening routine,
which is feeding the dogs.
So they get kibble, water, clean
up poop, all the fun stuff.
I'll start with Flo.
Hi, Flo.
You're okay.
You want your supper?
You already ate!
Do I have savings? No.
I do have debt.
My investment is my dogs.
Hey, Hanky.
Hi, hi.
Hi, Darlette!
Where's your poop?
I live at home.
It's like treasure hunting.
I work at a real estate office.
I make around $40,000 a year.
And I spend that, if not
more, on dogs and gear.
It's really important to make
sure that when you have puppies,
they're well socialized.
Dogs shouldn't be
fearful of people.
They should be
happy and give kisses.
Thank you.
There are worries about me
being able to fund my sled dogs.
If I don't have enough
money to support my dogs,
I'm going to have to
find homes for them.
That's one of the most
stressful things about this.
How are ya?
Not bad, how you guys doing?
Oh, not too bad.
This is Centennial RV Park.
This is where we
live at the moment.
In remote Fort McMurray, Canada,
wages are high to
attract oil field workers.
But the costs of
living is high, too.
A middle class house
costs about $600,000,
and that's if you can find one.
A housing shortage means
that many well-paid workers
can't find homes.
It costs TJ over $1,000 a month
just for a trailer hook up.
This is my place here.
This is lot #9.
As you see, I
fully enclosed it in.
Framed it all,
insulation, vapour barrier,
bubble wrapped it so it
looks like a spaceship.
I bought the trailer for 3,000,
and I think the appraisal
I got on it was almost 11.
Basically the only fees in
the park are your pad fee:
1,390 a month, which
includes your sewer hookup,
your water, and
your electricity.
Back here I actually made myself
a redneck urinal, as I call it.
So any time that you
need to go take a leak,
she's free flow, bud.
I hardly spend anything.
The wife pretty much
takes care of most of that.
You know, the bills are
paid and whatnot 'cause
she makes enough
out of her own money.
This is the master.
It's where all the,
uh, magic happens.
The kitchen.
I guess you would say
it's, uh, "open concept".
Lots of bacon
and meat and shit like that
'cause, well, it's
important to make sure
you eat lots of meat
and shit like that.
There's a lot of people in this
park that make a lot more
than me and still
live in a trailer.
*
Blake's trying to make
the national boxing team,
and get the monthly training
allowance that goes with it.
He owes his parents
a few thousand dollars
and can't ask them for more.
My parents helped me out a lot
here when I quit and everything.
I mean, they helped me out when
I was - I was kind of in a bind,
and yeah, I borrowed
money off them, for sure.
Well, I'm definitely gonna
fix up my truck and sell it.
Think I would
probably get like...
maybe 4 or $5,000
for it, I think.
I hope.
So yeah, that would
definitely help out.
Support from the
national team is $900 a month,
to help you with
training and that.
So yeah, that would
definitely, definitely help.
Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam,
bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam...
Put this one on the bottom
and put this one top of it.
It's probably been a little
tough for my parents and stuff.
I mean, I've been living here
the last few months without...
being able to really
help them out very much.
They know what I'm trying to do,
and they know that I'm
putting my heart into it.
They know that
I'm gonna give back.
*
Fort Mac had two strip clubs.
With the economy
depressed, now there's only one.
Jessica still has to maintain
her looks, so to save money,
she buys hair extensions from a
friend who has a home business.
- Hey, how are you?
- Good, good, what's up?
Not much.
Kind of late for
your appointment.
You are getting...
I'm always late, what can I say?
All my costumes, all
my hair and my makeup,
that's all out of
pocket expenses.
Guess what,
I have for you more of your...
your colour that came in.
Jay! Bring the hair, okay.
If you have some - a little
bit of dough, what I will do is
you can bring it and
we just take it out,
and this is all ready.
Oh nice, yeah.
I'll bring the
other stuff, for sure.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
My hair, my body, I have to
try to keep really good care of
yourself to be in
this kind of industry.
I got my boobs done in Bangkok.
It ended up being
$2,300 instead of 10 grand,
which it would have been here.
So how is work?
Um, work's alright.
I mean, like
everything else here,
it's kind of been
slowing down, definitely.
A lot of people have
lost jobs here recently.
You go to work, like,
"We don't need you today."
Yeah.
No, I know, a lot of
customers at work,
they got like a layoff order
that as soon as like
after they go back
from Christmas break,
they have no work
to come back to.
Oh, Jesus.
So I guess it's better
to know before Christmas
and before you spend all your
money on Christmas presents
and come back to no job.
At least this way
you kind of know first.
How is it looking?
Looks good.
Then you can give me
just a tip, it's okay.
- Thank you so much.
- Alright, alright.
Christina makes
just $40,000 a year,
but spends more
than that on her dogs.
Dog race competition costs
will push the bill even higher.
Because the dogs
are really strong,
I have to secure
the quad to my truck,
or else they'll take off
with the quad and without me.
My sled was $5,000,
lines were 640,
harnesses are closer to
2,000, collars are $500 a year.
And now I'll start
taking out the dogs.
Good girl.
Dog houses are $125 each,
so each dog getting one
costs me almost $4,000.
So in dog food alone, it would
cost about 18 grand per year,
just for dog food.
Right now I'm training
for the Canadian Challenge.
This race is gonna cost
between 10 and 15 grand.
Hi, Flo!
Are you a good girl?
She's my little girl,
she's my little girl.
Yes, my little girl.
Winnings from races don't
cover the cost of competing.
She'll have to
fundraise it all herself
through local sponsorship.
It's a lot of work just to spend
four days alone with her team.
I'm known as the crazy dog lady.
*
Hey!
Hey!
*
I attempted the Yukon Quest,
which is known as the hardest
dog sled race in the world.
*
It had to be at least four
or five days into the race
when I caught the Norwalk Virus.
I was weak and I
was dizzy, and...
I was like, you know, I should
pull over 'cause if I pass out,
the dogs are just
gonna leave me behind.
'Cause that's what they do,
they've got a one-track mind.
And as I was thinking that,
that's all I remember,
is waking up in a snow bank,
crawling on the ground.
I shine my light down the trail.
My lead dog was sitting
and staring at me like,
"Don't worry, I got your back."
Well, we had a really
good day of training today,
especially with
all this fresh snow.
So they deserve to eat
like kings and queens tonight.
In order for me to go to
competitions and races,
I do need to fundraise.
There you go, Darlette.
Fort McMurray allows me
to do my dog sledding.
I'm not too sure that I
could do it anywhere else.
Without the sponsorships, I
wouldn't be able to afford...
to do this.
I would have - you
know, I'd be broke.
So everyone kind of in
the industry relies on tips.
They're always kind of
what you're counting on
to make extra money.
If it's a busy night,
you can make hundreds
of dollars in tips.
No matter
how small the crowd is,
the strip club gets 18 of
every $30 Jessica makes.
It was kind of a bit of
a slower night tonight,
so I made...
380 for the night.
Being onstage, you want to
try to make at least 500 bucks,
but it's alright, I
guess it is what it is.
The low price of oil is
killing jobs in Fort McMurray.
There's less disposable income
in town, and everybody feels it.
I rent a room in a house.
There's a couple other
people that live here.
Usually people rent a
place in here by the week.
They're usually doing shift work
up in camp and have a week off,
and they don't want to go home,
so people just come
and go from here.
I pay about $1,000
a month rent here,
just for a one bedroom place.
Just one bedroom in a place,
not even a one-bedroom place.
Jessica used to be able
to afford frequent trips.
Look for a good
vacation thing on there.
I want to click on the
hotel and look at it.
My boyfriend's name is Skylar,
and we've been together for
probably eight months now.
Work has been very slow for
Jess in Fort Mac, and there was
a point where during the summer
where I needed to be financially
supported, and she
helped out a lot with that.
I would have
literally gone homeless
if it wasn't for her, so...
When I got here, I was looking
to get a job on the mine sites
where you can make big money.
Those jobs just weren't hiring.
At one point in time,
this was a huge boom town.
There's obviously gonna be a
smaller percentage of people who
wanna go spend on strippers
and stuff like that, and...
There just isn't that money
in Fort McMurray anymore.
Can you see what vacations
they have for the third?
But I don't know, like...
I don't think you
can go that far.
Right now, for me to be happy,
I'd definitely like to take
a vacation, try to get
away from everything.
Just kind of leave all
the troubles behind.
Definitely I feel like
that's the best kind of therapy.
They don't give
you the full price.
I want that really
nice one that we had.
*
You gonna go do a snow angel?
With a young family,
TJ wants to transition
from transient worker
to Fort Mac citizen.
You're supposed to go backwards!
Now that we both know that this
is where we're gonna be staying
for a while, I think it's time
to actually start
looking for a house.
You're supposed to go backwards!
Agh!
Look at the war face you got.
Having a kid was one of
the best days of my life.
I was ecstatic.
That's where Tony Jr.
came in, or T3,
'cause he'd be Tony the Third.
Ah, first time home buyer, so
it would be 5% down payment.
So $500,000 house, you're
looking at, what, 25,000?
And I probably have
30,000 in the bank.
So I'm not gonna
have any problem
coming up with the
down payment for it.
Working around his
training schedule,
Blake has taken a part-time
night shift job so he can start
to pay back his parents who
have been supporting him.
It's definitely a lot
harder to find work now
than it was a year
or two years ago.
I'm not sure exactly
how much I'll be making,
but it'll probably be
around 20 bucks an hour.
I wash the under carriage
of site trucks and like
trucks that are in the
mine and stuff like that.
Pretty dirty, and it's
not really my dream job,
but I mean, I'm thankful
for any kind of work right now.
I mean, I need
money and I'm broke.
Ideally I'd work with my trades.
Hopefully I can pay
my dad back right away.
*
Probably be laughing at me,
saying that I'm gonna pay him
back or whatever, but...
but I am gonna pay him back,
and this is definitely a start.
*
Still gotta find
time to train and stuff,
so I mean, that's
definitely hard.
Can't have your
cake and eat it too.
I mean, it'd be
nice to try, I guess.
Blake's job will take
some financial pressure
off his parents.
TJ's dad is traveling
to an oil camp
four hours south
of Fort Mac for work.
I'm just gonna go shoot the
shit, have a couple beers,
and hang out in
the trailer park.
Where does he live?
Right around the corner!
Let's go!
The old man there, he's getting
ready to head up to Red Water.
Lotta different
companies out there,
and it's supposed to
be a couple year job.
There's a lot of things in the
oil business that you can hate,
and a lot of
things you can love.
It's been very, very good to
me, very good to my family.
But right now,
people ain't working.
You look around
this trailer park.
We are lucky enough to keep
working because right now,
there ain't no goddamn work.
None.
Come on out and see the bike.
This is a piece of fucking art.
This is a 1973 Shovelhead,
which is about as rare
as fucking hen's teeth.
They're sending me
to go do a job,
but my family is here.
And when you leave,
you fucking hate to leave
because you lose them friends.
Living up here in
the fucking oil sands,
it is what it is.
You wanna go have
a beer, or what?
- Fucking right, I'm gonna piss.
- The fuck's going on?
Oh, my dick's about
ready to fall off.
You are one fucked up individ--
Holy fuck, there's a whole
crew of 'em, for fuck sakes.
*
*
*
You're killing me!
Guys, I'm getting drunk,
and I made up a fucking tune.
Beautiful.
It's not always
the things you have
that make you happy, right?
It's being around good
people, good friends,
you know, stuff like that.
Don't kiss me!
Fuck you!
*
With a reduced income,
lake relies on the kindness
of his coach, who owns the only
professional gym in Fort Mac.
Go, go, go.
My coach is Cory Pie.
He doesn't really charge me.
Pretty much any time
I'll call him and be like,
"Hey, are you busy or whatever,
do you want to train?"
He'll be like, "Yep."
I've known Blake
for seven years,
I'm pretty sure it is.
Since he was like 15 years old.
Turn more, Blake, turn.
Angles, turn, that's it.
Pivot, lots of pivot, pivot.
For boxing, the most important
thing is to be able to show up
all the time and
put the work in.
That's it, keep
moving, keep moving.
And that's what I see
that's special about Blake.
If he says he's gonna
be here, he's here.
The fight's this weekend.
The idea for the fight is I
want you in the guy's face.
So you should
always be almost in
the range of my
punches, alright?
Alright.
There you go,
right off the track.
Keep working that angle,
keep working that angle.
It is expensive at the amateur
level to train and complete,
mostly 'cause we have to travel.
It's Fort McMurray, we're five
hours north of everybody,
so we need to travel
almost every time,
and usually we have
to stay the night.
Blake's biggest goal would
be to win this weekend here,
coming up, which is the
Western Canadian Championships,
and to go to nationals.
And then after that you're
on the national team, right?
And that's hopefully a run
for the Olympics at that point.
Five seconds.
Time.
I definitely believe Blake
has what it takes to get to
the national team, and
this is his opportunity
to bust onto the scene
now and make a splash.
Because of the oil slump, an
average Fort McMurray house
costs $100,000 less.
TJ is looking at buying a house
that still costs over
half a million dollars.
He thinks it's a bargain.
All the rent prices
are coming down.
I think last time
I heard on the news,
they were saying that
40% of the rentals are vacant.
It's not a bad thing.
I mean, the people that decide
to stay here for a living,
it's great... great for us.
Alright, so 539-9, that's
the asking price on this one.
So you do much cooking or what?
Me?
Do I look like a guy that cooks?
When it's my night to
cook, it's Burger King.
Real estate is a little
bit more expensive here
'cause there's not
a lot of area.
You know, people are
making more money,
but it's all in perspective.
What are these going for?
Uh, 699.
Yeah.
That actually doesn't seem
too bad compared to what it...
probably would have been
when I first came out here.
Oh yeah, yeah.
The oil patch has
been great to me,
my family, and lots
of other families.
I plan on staying out
here for a long time.
Fort McMurray's massive
real estate boom is over.
Lots of sellers, few buyers.
Christina's dog operation
depends on her job
at the realty office
where her mom works.
This printer's
very temperamental.
I would prefer not to use
this machine and its attitude.
I work at a real estate office
called Sutton Group
Fort McMurray.
I do the social media, I put
up signs, measurements.
Ah!
I got my real estate
license to help my mom,
because at the time the market
was really, really busy.
Well, how do I get
out of that now?
- Terry, are you printing?
- No.
- It just delayed then?
- You did it!
I didn't even hit print yet.
On Friday I found out that
my hours were being reduced.
I now only work
four days a week.
I lost about $200
off each pay cheque,
which makes a huge
impact on what I can afford.
That'll cover some of my
bills, mostly dog stuff.
*
I have to make a decision
on: do I try and find
a part-time job, or do I make
cutbacks at the dog lot,
and try to find homes
for some of the dogs?
*
It's a 300-mile bus ride
from Fort McMurray to Edmonton.
Jessica needs to work there
to pay bills back in Fort Mac.
The $300 trip takes a big bite
out of what she's gonna make.
*
I'm just at the hotel.
I'm just gonna go see one
of my friends from Edmonton,
just to go do a
private dance for him.
Probably make
about $600 from him,
and it's for an
hour of a private dance.
He would spend that much
and more at the club anyways,
so having me come
do a private dance,
have a couple drinks with him,
he's definitely more
than okay to pay that.
*
I wouldn't want to be dancing
any later than 33 at the most
for me 'cause that's when I'd
be wanting to start a family.
*
I wouldn't mind being a
stay-at-home mom, but I'd also
like to go travel around and
see what else is out there.
*
I'd like to get all the stuff
I want to get done out of
the way so I can put my whole
effort towards my children.
*
The cost of coming to
Edmonton was just roughly $300,
but I made $600, so
it's definitely worth it.
*
Christina's real estate job
dropped from 40
to 30 hours a week.
A warm winter with little
snowfall has been bad news
for dog sled racers as well.
The dog sled race we were
training for all season
got canceled because of the
abnormally warm temperatures.
We kind of stopped our
fundraising for the year
just 'cause it didn't feel
right asking for donations
when we weren't
going to any races.
To help pay for some of the
costs, we're doing tours.
It's a good way to help
pay for the dog supplies,
and stuff like that.
Hi, buddy!
Hi!
Hello! Hi!
Do you want the goggles, or...?
- It doesn't matter.
- Either way.
Do you want me
to take the goggles
and use the safety glasses?
Sure.
- You guys ready?
- We're ready!
Alright!
A half-hour dog sled
ride is $125 a person.
I didn't get into dog sledding
to make money off of my dogs,
but if I can make money to
provide things for my dogs,
then that would be great.
Hopefully by the summer
oil prices will go up,
and things can
get back to normal.
I'm pretty optimistic
I'll get my hours back.
I do believe I
have a future here.
Fort McMurray is my home,
and I couldn't see
myself anywhere else.
Blake is in Vancouver
to fight for a shot
on the National Boxing Team.
If he wins, he'll
receive funding for training.
The trip cost over $1,000,
money he doesn't have.
What's your club called?
Uh, Sweet Times Boxing,
in Fort McMurray Alberta.
This is the first,
like, big competition
that I've really
been in, so it's...
quite a bit on the line.
63.5, thank you.
So do you have
any health problems
that I need to know about?
Ah, no.
if I had all the money
in the world right now,
my coach would be here,
he'd be here for sure.
I never really fought
without him before,
but I mean, it'll be fine.
Like, we did all
the work in the gym,
so I know what I gotta
do, and we're ready.
And representing Alberta...
Bbblake...
McPhee!
Box!
Stop!
Just hesitate a little longer,
and you're gonna get in
a little closer, okay?
Hit him and then off
to the side, alright?
*
Good fight, man.
*
Tough fight.
It's not that bad, but...
it's frustrating though.
Way she goes, I suppose.
Blake will not get a
shot at the national team,
but TJ is optimistic
that his family
will finally have a real home.
Here's a couple of the
places that I looked at.
They range from about 650,000.
Pricey.
It's about what I figured.
The amount of houses coming up,
it might be the best bet just to
wait her out and keep looking
and see if something comes up.
Yes, dear.
I could carry the $3,000 a
month mortgage, if I wanted to.
Whether I'm willing
to, I don't know.
I might sacrifice something
a little bit less 'cause
to be honest, I didn't
want to spend that.
Lovely wife got me
some beers ready
'cause she knows I'm always
out on a tour somewhere.
So let's... let's go
see what we can get into.
Oh, there's a campfire going.
See, now I feel like we match.
I like Fort Mac, I do.
I really love Fort Mac.
I don't worry about buying
a place in Fort McMurray,
thinking that it's gonna
crash or anything
because it will recover.
It always has.
This place will never
turn into a ghost town.
*
Two months after filming,
wildfires engulf Fort McMurray.
Well, here we are
leaving the roundabout.
Getting out of
town just in time.
Getting the fuck out of dodge.
I can feel the heat.
It forced the emergency
evacuation of the entire city.
80,000 people scrambled onto
a single highway to escape.
Oh my god...
*
The fire raged
for three days in May 2016,
burning 2,400 houses, closing
six major oil sands operations.
It was so big they
called it "the beast".
There were no casualties,
but with damage of $3.6 billion,
it was the costliest natural
disaster in Canadian history.
No one was allowed to return to
Fort McMurray for over a month.
I don't even know if
I want to go in there.
Christina escaped
with all her dogs.
This is her first time
back to the kennel.
It doesn't look bad,
but it doesn't...
definitely doesn't look good.
*
Oh, wow.
That's where the cabin was.
My dogs right now
are kind of scattered.
The community's
really helped out.
I lost, you know, my cabin
that we had just built,
which was also
full of our tools,
mushing gear, harnesses, lines.
I lost my Skidoo.
Um...
And of course, I don't...
have insurance out here, and...
You know, you don't realize
how expensive this sport is
until you have to start
replacing everything.
But it's just...
I told myself I
wasn't gonna cry.
It's just really hard
not to have my dogs around.
*
Jessica left town a
month before the fire.
I'm in Edmonton,
Alberta right now,
bartending at a
gentlemen's club downtown.
When I left Fort McMurray,
the club was really
slow at the time.
My ex-boyfriend, Skylar,
couldn't find a job.
So it was really
not feasible for me
to stay in Fort
McMurray anymore.
It's been very stressful,
but I feel that the industry
that I'm in has got you to
become a stronger person.
I know that I'm the only
that I have to depend on,
so I've got to pick myself
up and keep going again.
During the evacuation,
Blake stayed with a
friend in Edmonton.
Since the fire
I've had four fights.
I won three out of four of them.
I got to train with
some great fighters.
When I'm 40, I'm not
gonna be able to box,
I'm still gonna
be working though.
I don't know, I feel like
I'd be wasting my time
if I wasn't training and
getting ready to fight.
TJ and his dad return
home for the first time.
Everything they own, including
his father's beloved Harley,
is destroyed.
If the fire did not happen,
I would have stayed
in Fort McMurray for good.
My dad would've stayed
up there, all of us,
but right now it's...
it's almost willing
just to pack 'er on up
and, you know, go somewhere
you can make half the wage
and pay half the bills.
You know, I can make that
sacrifice, it don't bother me.
Even though TJ's
trailer was destroyed,
his financial losses
could've been greater
if he had purchased a house.
There's a lot,
lot of... emotions.
I don't know.
Stop.
*
I can only guess what's
gonna happen in the future.
You know, it's just like
winning the lottery:
you don't know
'til you hit it, right?
It's just shit luck.
Fort Mac is on the mend.
It always comes back.
Of four people, Christina
and Blake will recover,
and Jessica and
TJ have moved on.
Chances are they'll return
when the next boom hits.
*