Community gives big hand to 'Extreme Makeover'
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Editor's Note: The producers of the show say they have received enough volunteers to help with the home, and no longer need anyone else at this time.
KIRKLAND, Wash. -- Construction crews working for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" in Kirkland are scrambling to finish the home for the Chapin family, but weather and other complications had put them behind schedule.
With a lot of hard work and determination, and a community ready to help, they reported Monday evening that they were back on schedule.
On Sunday night, workers were scrambling around the site as the roof was completed, and heavy equipment continued to move in materials to the home being built for Connie Chapin and her children.
Last Wednesday, the family's lives changed forever when the show's bus rolled up to the front door and host Ty Pennington informed the Chapins that they'd be getting a new house.
The family has lived in their little yellow house in Kirkland for decades, but time has taken its toll.
"Structurally, it's a mess," said John Littlefield, a member of the show's design team. "It could cave in at any time."
Building a house in just a week is no easy task, and the Chapin's home was more difficult than most projects on the show.
The home was made with toxic paint and insulation, which means it must be taken apart piece by piece, then rebuilt, all within a week. The show normally knocks down a house and hauls off the debris.
Add that to the wet weekend weather, and the already tight construction schedule was looking quite tough.
And if that wasn't enough, several of the project's landscapers were treated for smoke inhalation early Monday morning after a fire broke out at the hotel where they were staying. They're all OK, but many lost all their personal belongings.
So the show's organizers put out the call for some help in the community -- and boy did they respond!
By Monday afternoon, more than 700 people had showed up to help and all were being put to use.
The project is running 24 hours per day, and volunteers are being fed right on site.
The Chapin family returns home on Wednesday, and the episode featuring their new house is expected to air sometime in January.
For More Information:
Find out how to volunteer or watch the construction
KIRKLAND, Wash. -- Construction crews working for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" in Kirkland are scrambling to finish the home for the Chapin family, but weather and other complications had put them behind schedule.
With a lot of hard work and determination, and a community ready to help, they reported Monday evening that they were back on schedule.
On Sunday night, workers were scrambling around the site as the roof was completed, and heavy equipment continued to move in materials to the home being built for Connie Chapin and her children.
Last Wednesday, the family's lives changed forever when the show's bus rolled up to the front door and host Ty Pennington informed the Chapins that they'd be getting a new house.
The family has lived in their little yellow house in Kirkland for decades, but time has taken its toll.
"Structurally, it's a mess," said John Littlefield, a member of the show's design team. "It could cave in at any time."
Building a house in just a week is no easy task, and the Chapin's home was more difficult than most projects on the show.
The home was made with toxic paint and insulation, which means it must be taken apart piece by piece, then rebuilt, all within a week. The show normally knocks down a house and hauls off the debris.
Add that to the wet weekend weather, and the already tight construction schedule was looking quite tough.
And if that wasn't enough, several of the project's landscapers were treated for smoke inhalation early Monday morning after a fire broke out at the hotel where they were staying. They're all OK, but many lost all their personal belongings.
So the show's organizers put out the call for some help in the community -- and boy did they respond!
By Monday afternoon, more than 700 people had showed up to help and all were being put to use.
The project is running 24 hours per day, and volunteers are being fed right on site.
The Chapin family returns home on Wednesday, and the episode featuring their new house is expected to air sometime in January.
For More Information:
Find out how to volunteer or watch the construction
