As the smoke slowly thinned and the fires were brought under control, one truth became impossible to ignore. The real test for the city was only beginning. Rebuilding would take years. Healing would take longer. And beyond bricks and roads, there would be a reckoning—about preparedness, responsibility, and how to honor what was lost.
The fire had scarred the city’s landscape, but it also exposed its core. How the community chose to remember the night, demand answers, and rebuild from the ashes would define it long after the last ember cooled.
