Flood victims start moving in to temporary housing

Flood victims are starting to move into a new temporary housing camp in southeast Calgary this week.

The pop-up community of Great Plains will be able to accommodate about 700 people in trailers at 58th Street and 68th Avenue S.E. when fully up and running.

Ainsley Tymchyne and her family lost their Hampton Hills home in High River. She said the adjustment is a challenge for her and her young children.

"They're a little apprehensive. They're not too sure about the trailers being home. They do see the construction site and to them, it is a little scary, she said.

Project coordinator Rex Landis said while the site isn't perfect, it's a first step for Albertans looking to move forward.

"They can put their own little touches to that room, to their own little garden space. It gives them a sense of one, accomplishment, and two, of maybe owning a little piece of something they've lost, he said.

Great Plains is the second temporary community built by the provincial government for flood victims.

The Saddlebrook camp set up north of High River can house up to 1,200 people.