Pasadena shelter closes, Duarte shelter opens for Eaton fire victims
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Eaton fire victims who were living at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium complex moved to a shelter in Duarte on Friday, American Red Cross officials said.
Managers of the auditorium complex, which has hosted America’s Got Talent, orchestra concerts and many other events in its nearly 100-year history, had requested that it be returned to the city of Pasadena by early February, the L.A. County Department of Public Social Services said in a news release Friday.
Earlier this month, about 250 people were living at the shelter, managed by the American Red Cross. Since the number of fire evacuees there had decreased from a peak of about 1,500, the goal was to move the remaining residents to a smaller building, city of Pasadena spokesperson Lisa Derderian told The Times earlier this month.
The Eaton fire cut a brutal swath through Altadena and a cherished way of life in this eclectic foothill community it upended.
The NAACP Image Awards are scheduled to take place at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium on Feb. 22, and America’s Got Talent will film live shows there on March 14 and 19, according to the auditorium’s website.
The Eaton fire, which began Jan. 7, leveled swaths of Altadena and nearby communities, destroying over 9,400 homes and other structures and claiming 17 lives. On the Westside, the Palisades fire destroyed nearly 7,000 structures and killed 12.
In choosing the new shelter location at the Pamela Park gymnasium in Duarte, L.A. County and Red Cross officials hoped to keep fire evacuees close to their social networks and the neighborhood resources they are familiar with, the news release said.
Residents at the Duarte shelter will continue to receive meals as well as disaster mental health services and disaster health services, a Red Cross spokesperson said Saturday.
Transition specialists from the Red Cross will help shelter residents find transportation and develop a “clear plan.” The Red Cross will help residents find more permanent housing and connect them to federal, state and county resources, according to the L.A. County Department of Public Social Services news release.
“I will continue to closely track the well-being of those impacted, ensuring they have access to critical resources and a pathway to stability as they transition to the new shelter location,” Kathryn Barger, the L.A. County supervisor who represents the area, said in the news release.
The one-month transition goal for the Red Cross shelter at the Pasadena Convention Center is meant to mark a move to a smaller shelter space.
Barger is also urging local property owners to rent to fire victims.
The L.A. County Development Authority and the Red Cross are trying to find one and two-bedroom rentals within 10 miles of the Eaton fire boundary, particularly in Pasadena, Glendale and Monrovia, Barger said in a news release Thursday.
“Many of these families are struggling to rebuild their lives while ensuring stability for their children,” Barger said. “I urge property owners with available units to partner with us and provide a lifeline for those in need.”
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