Karen Myles, 66, fled her Altadena, California home in pajamas as flames consumed her neighborhood. Her son guided her to safety through fiery trees and sparking wires. After 40 years in her house, she’s not going back. “That fire took everything out of me,” she said, considering a move to Colorado.
Across Los Angeles, Pacific Palisades residents Sonia and James Cummings, 77 and 66, also lost their long-time home. “We worked years to make it perfect,” Sonia said. Now, they face a wasteland and won’t rebuild.
California’s fires have killed two dozen people and destroyed over 10,000 structures. Toxic ash blankets neighborhoods, complicating cleanup and rebuilding. Los Angeles County is offering free hazardous waste removal, but the road to recovery is daunting.
Altadena resident Shawna Dawson-Beer, 50, lost her renovated “forever home.” Returning to her street, she found only ashes. “Our community is scattered to the wind,” she said. Her husband, Marcus Beer, 54, worries about rebuilding in a now-uninsurable burn zone.
Jewelry designer Charlotte Dewaele, 48, whose rental home survived, faces a grim reality. “Am I going to make my kid wear a mask outside for years?” she asked, concerned about toxic air and construction.
Skyrocketing rebuilding costs and uncertain insurance payouts leave many considering leaving. Some fear developers will reshape these tight-knit areas during a lengthy reconstruction process.
Still, abandoning the community is difficult. Dawson-Beer struggled to lease a house 100 miles away. “The idea of leaving everything I know gave me a panic attack,” she said.
For survivors, the choice is stark: rebuild or start over elsewhere.
Also read: Wildfire Survivors Face Rental Price Surge
