Eaton fire survivors travel to Sacramento seeking support for $25M rebuilding fund
Eaton fire survivors travel to Sacramento
More than 100 Eaton Fire survivors, workers and community leaders traveled to Sacramento to urge state leaders to support $25 million for the proposed CARE Fund.
Eaton Fire survivors made their way to Sacramento by bus on Tuesday. They say the goal is to push state leaders to support $25 million for a proposed fund that would help residents rebuild.
"After 19 months, fire survivors are still fighting challenges, still don't have the funding to rebuild," Jose Madera with the Pasadena Community Job Center said Tuesday.
What we know:
Over 100 Eaton Fire survivors, workers and community leaders took a bus to Sacramento Tuesday morning to call on state leaders for $25 million for a proposed fund. They say the money would help Altadena residents rebuild and return to their community.
"In the midst of rebuilding, we realized there's a big gap. There's going to be a huge gap not only for myself, but most of the people who have lost their homes," Damon Blount said.
He says that's why he's traveling to the state Capitol to push for the Community Aid for Rebuilding and Equity Fund, also known as the CARE Fund.
It's money he says could help him and his wife rebuild the Altadena home they lost in the Eaton Fire, a home they had lived in for over 25 years.
"Not only did I lose my home, I lost my personal work truck. I even lost my job. So I don't even qualify. Loans are not going to cut it for us. We need grants to be able to come home," Blount said.
According to the Dena Rise Up Coalition, the $25 million CARE Fund would also "preserve and expand affordable housing opportunities for displaced renters and working families."
What they're saying:
Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez of Pasadena shared a video on her social media page in June advocating for the CARE Fund.
In a statement to FOX 11 on Tuesday, she said, "I’m proudly supporting Eaton Fire Survivors in their advocacy for the CARE Fund, a critical funding request to prevent the permanent displacement of longtime Altadena residents and support the rebuilding of affordable housing. Fire survivors deserve California’s continued support in their long road to recovery."
Assemblymember John Harabedian of Pasadena shared a statement following Tuesday's trip to Sacramento.
"Dena Rise Up is bringing an important message to Sacramento. Over a year and a half after the Eaton Fire, there are still families who have not been able to return home, renters struggling to find a place they can afford to stay, and survivors dealing with smoke damage and other impacts that continue long after the fire. We cannot lose sight of these families as the recovery moves forward. I appreciate the survivors who are making the trip to Sacramento and continuing to push state leaders to address the gaps they are seeing firsthand. I’ll continue working with my colleagues and the community to make sure the state’s response keeps pace with the realities families in Altadena are facing."
FOX 11 reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom's office for comment about the $25 million for the CARE Fund. Newsom's office returned the message with the following statement:
"We hear the survivors making the trip to Sacramento today, and their frustration is real. To date, the governor has cut red tape with 28 executive orders, provided over 1,400 families with up to 12 months of mortgage payments, announced a $100 million disaster rebuilding fund, and homeowners have already recovered $23.7 billion in insurance payouts. While California has made progress, wildfire survivors are still waiting on the federal disaster funding President Trump promised 18 months ago. Families in Altadena, Malibu and the Pacific Palisades deserve better. It’s time for President Trump to do his job."
In May, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced an additional $100 million proposal for the state to help close the financing gap for the survivors of the 2025 Los Angeles-area wildfires who are rebuilding their homes.
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