oh my. How incredibly sad and stressful.

So sorry to hear this. Yes, keep us all updated and sent photos as the process plays out.

On first read, I thought you high-fived your son because the fire had solved some kind of vexing problem with the house. Got it now.

'Montgomery' is one of the most common county names in the US (more that 1 in ever 3 states has a Montgomery County). Can you narrow it down?

As the old saying goes, better torched than scorched. Both suck and so do floods.BTDT. Find a really good place to stay and book it for longer than you think you will need to and best of luck. Document everything.

I spent my grade school years in Montgomery County, MD, back when it was on the edge of the boonies (early '60s, Franklin Park). I hardly recognize it now. The quickest way to get to our school was to cut across a dirt road and a one-lane bridge over Rock Creek.

I am so sorry to heat what you are going through. And thank you for offering to share with us what the process is like for you following the loss of your home. That is so kind of you and I look forward to reading about it. Good luck.

Here are some links to the fire

https://www.statter911.com/2017/12/22/raw-video-montgomery-county-maryland-house-fire/

https://wtop.com/montgomery-county/2017/12/germantown-fire-displaces-family/slide/1/

The insurance company, Travelers informed me yesterday that the house and contents have been declared a total loss. Also the house was built in 1976 so they had to test for Asbestos and some of the drywall grout tested positive.

I am so sorry you're going through this. I know exactly how you feel, since we had a house fire in August and are still in temporary housing while the damage is being remediated. We had a defective dehumidifier catch fire and burn some pvc sump pump plumbing in the basement utility area. It was a smoke event only, because of our whole house detectors and monitoring the firemen arrived in just 8 minutes and put it out immediately before the flames caught the structure on fire. So when we walked back in, everything we owned in our 6000 sq ft house was intact and looked perfect, but smelled like burnt plastic. The remediation company is hand cleaning each item and using an ozone chamber to further remove smoke smell from our belongings. My biggest concern is photos -- we had many many old family photos stored in an adjacent basement closet. If they cannot be deodorized, my solution is to scan each one to digitize. Our adjuster signed off on it, so fingers crossed. Perhaps if any of your photos survived you could consider the same solution.

You will need to have a lot of patience with the process, it takes a looooong time. Hang in there.

It has been about two weeks since the fire and have to say it has been an emotional roller coaster with me staying calm cool and collected with occasionally breaking down and letting it out. I literally only have what I took in a small carry-on bag to my trip to Texas, jeans, hiking pants, a few shirts, a light jacket, deodorant and toothbrush. I elected to stay in Tysons Corner to better find gainful work in my main profession as a Business Strategist. Before me is to list what I can and make a claim for the contents that were burned or smoke filled to ruin. It is a daunting task along with finding housing for the next 12 months while my house is rebuilt. Having spent so many years renovating the house I am both looking forward to and dreading picking out new countertop and flooring materials. I will be using Houzz.com in this process and will welcome your comments and suggestions as I proceed.

We appreciate you allowing us to take this journey with you.

The roller coaster of emotions is completely normal and it will level out, I promise. You will feel much better once you are in a temporary rented house. Make that one decision a priority and then you will have a home base from which they work and your disorientation will ease somewhat. Again, hang in there, I'm thinking of you and wish you the best!

I just signed a lease for an Apartment and it is pretty nice (see below). The insurance company, Travelers has been great at every turn. You need to keep a close eye on the smoke and water remediation people, who can buy a certificate while not knowing much. I have not been able to recover anything from the house yet because the house tested positive for asbestos and a special team has to get rid of it in hazmat style suits. The insurance company is predicting 12 to 13 months now before the house is rebuilt. I am hoping to draw on some of you to help estimate costs for the claim and also advice for how to rebuild.