Waiting up to 26 hours, Eaton Fire survivors form bonds in overnight line outside relief center
Before dawn Saturday, hundreds of Eaton Fire survivors were lined up outside a wildfire relief center in Pasadena on its last day open, many bundled in blankets and heavy coats as they waited through the cold early morning hours.
An Altadena woman who lost her home in the deadly fire said she stayed through the night — waiting 26 hours.
"I actually was here for two days. I came two days in a row," she said, saying she couldn't make it in the day before. "They cut the line like right in front of me. And I said, 'I'm gonna stay until tomorrow.' So we did. With our friends over here, we stayed all night."
Called the Wildfire Resource Hub, the relief center at Kaiser Permanente's Walnut Center building in Pasadena was organized by FEMA, Los Angeles County agencies, nonprofits and disaster aid groups. But it will soon close, no longer keeping its doors open beyond Saturday, and organizers are still working to find another location.
It had been a one-stop shop of sorts, offering help with everything from food and financial assistance to fire recovery information.
"It's all gone... but this is a journey"
Several people in line spoke of losing their homes, some without insurance coverage to rebuild and many trying to move on after losing lifelong possessions in the wildfire that sparked Jan. 7. It turned out to be one of the deadliest and most destructive in California state history, killing 17 people and leaving entire neighborhoods of homes and other buildings burned to the ground.
"To think that now I am in my 70s, and I have to start over, is overwhelming to me," said Dianne Lewis, saying she came early Saturday morning to make sure she made it inside. She received one of the numbers being handed out to ensure a spot in line.
"Today, I'm excited because I have a number," Lewis said. "But I had to come very early."
Those not close enough to the front of the line would go without numbers, meaning they couldn't get in. Organizers said several people would be not be able get assistance, the demand for aid apparently higher than what could be offered at the Pasadena center. Until a new location is established, many will have to turn to other sources of aid.
A FEMA disaster recovery center was being opened in Altadena this week along with other centers — a list can be found here.
While thinking of her most precious losses, Lewis spoke of looking ahead as she works to move forward.
"It's all gone. I have no baby pictures of my children. I just lost my mom last year, and I lost her ashes in the fire. So that is probably the hardest part for me... because I just lost her last year," she said, her voice breaking. "But this is a journey. We need to come together as people."
She spoke with a note of positivity seen among many of the people standing in line Saturday morning, some making new friendships as they waited for hours alongside individuals experiencing a common hardship most will never know. Meanwhile, others arrived with neighbors who have been facing the same journey, reflecting a sense of camaraderie as they try to rebuild and recover.
"To be strong — not only for my neighbor... but people around me"
Two neighbors in the tight-knit community of Altadena, the quaint town in the San Gabriel Valley left devastated by the Eaton Fire, made their way to the Pasadena relief center together. They both lost their homes and have been supporting each other since. In the hours before dawn, they sat next to each other in lawn chairs while waiting hours, one of them holding a small dog in his lap.
"It's been pretty tough to find an apartment that allows dogs," William said. "It's been really rough."
His neighbor, a U.S. Army veteran named West, lost the home he grew up in, which had been in his family for over 70 years. He said one of the most difficult things was "to see the devastation and knowing that everything just left us in a matter of an hour or so."
"So right now, we're just trying to do the rebuild process — all of us here standing in line — and be strong about it," he said, saying he has turned to sources and information found online as well as aid from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
"I've never really had to use the VA like that, but now, I'm using the VA wholeheartedly," he said.
"And they've really supported me and kept me above my sanity level to be strong — not only for my neighbor and Benji right here," he said, gesturing toward his neighbor's dog, "but for my sister and people that are around me."
Sean Triplett, another Altadena resident waiting in line, said he had been there since 1:30 a.m. in hopes of getting in once the center opened at 9 a.m. Like so many in the town, the house he lost had been in his family for generations. With no home insurance, he's trying to find a way forward, while still expressing a sense of hope and gratitude seen among many of the wildfire survivors.
"All that's left is the chimney — that's it. But my dog is here. He's alive and I'm alive," Triplett said. "Whatever these people can do for me, I would love it. I appreciate it. I think it's gonna bring the city closer... If anybody can help us, we're here to be helped."
"I don't wanna get all emotional, but I feel a certain way, you know what I mean?" he said. "And if you don't understand, you don't understand. Some people don't. They don't know. They see it, but they don't feel it."
