LA wildfire survivors escaped the flames only to face a devastating new nightmare

When the Eaton Fire forced Anne Marie Molina and her family to evacuate their Pasadena home, they had no idea how much it would cost simply to get their lives back.Anne Marie and her husband, Carlos, had rented the same home for seven years, raising five children there.But when the fires came, they couldn’t find temporary housing large enough for everyone.Their family was separated.

Without renters’ insurance, they found themselves paying for both their regular home and temporary accommodations, draining their savings and maxing out credit cards just to get by.The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.

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Never miss a story That’s why I believe we need to rethink what meaningful disaster recovery looks like.Even after returning to their damaged home, the expenses continued.Furniture needed replacing.

Air filters became essential to protect their children from lingering dust and allergens.The fire was over, but the financial consequences were not.Nearly 21 months after the devastating January 2025 wildfires, Anne Marie’s experience illustrates a reality LA cannot afford to overlook: Surviving a disaster and recovering from one are two very different things.I am executive director of the Jewish Free Loan Association (JFLA), and what has stayed with me most is how quickly people’s lives changed and how overwhelming the financial consequences became.These were families and small business owners who, just days earlier, were paying their bills, raising their children and running their businesses.Suddenly, they were facing expenses they could never have anticipated.I remember thinking about how difficult it must be to ask for financial assistance when you’ve always been the person taking care of yourself and your family.

Many people who came to us had never imagined they would need an...