Altadena residents share update 1 year after devastating Eaton Fire
Altadena residents are sharing the struggles and progress they’ve faced trying to revitalize their community one year after the devastating Eaton Fire that burned more than 14,000 acres, damaged or destroyed about 10,000 structures and displaced tens of thousands of people in southern California, according to Cal Fire.
"It’s scary to really realize it’s been a year. Sometimes, to talk about it, evokes emotions that you’re not aware that’s inside," Shelene Hearring, founder of Two Dragons Martial Arts Studio in Altadena, told ABC News. "When I think of Altadena, it’s about people that helped to hold me together."
Before the Eaton Fire began on Jan. 7, 2025, Los Angeles County's Altadena area was known for its picturesque landscape and as one of the first places where Black and brown people were allowed to buy real estate.
Today, small business owners like Hearring are figuring out how to rebuild and help their fellow neighbors move forward after experiencing loss and trauma.
"My families [of students] made me realize that we need each other and we have to stand up and stay together and we are more powerful as we unite," Hearring said.
Over the past year, Hearring brought Two Dragons students displaced by the fire together, with class gatherings in parks and garages.
In the months since the fire, Hearring has even managed to purchase the land where her rented studio once stood, with the help of a nonprofit organization, Greenline Housing Foundation, and fundraising from others.
"I had an army behind me," Hearring said, adding of her studio’s future, "We are going to rebuild."
While Hearring is rebuilding, the difficulties of doing so have led other Altadena residents to sell their properties. Since the fire, more than 300 lots in the city have been sold, and nearly half of those were bought by corporations or investment properties, according to an ABC News data analysis.
Another 123 lots in Altadena are currently on the market, according to ABC News data analysis.
Other Altadena residents whose homes were still standing after the fire say they have faced difficulties returning home due to dangerous conditions like high lead levels.
"I came home to try to get some things put away and I got a migraine for three days," Yvonne Chaves Lombardi, an Eaton Fire survivor, told ABC News. "Lead cannot be 100% cleaned. Kids absorb the lead twice as fast as adults do."
Zaire Calvin, a community organizer whose sister died in the Eaton Fire, told ABC News he has grown frustrated by the rebuilding process.
“The ground's still on fire and there were developers coming in asking, 'Did you wanna sell your property?,'" Calvin, a fire survivor and activist, told ABC News. "I was so enraged at that point."
'We are not at the end of this journey'
The Jenkins family, who has roots in Altadena stretching back over 50 years, is also working to build back nine homes the family collectively lost to the fire.
"We know we are not at the end of this journey. We know we are still at the beginning of it but we are a lot stronger now," Marcus Betts told ABC News.
One of the family's homes -- owned by Betts' aunt -- now has a newly built garage and the family is already planning to revive their beloved game nights.
But rebuilding isn't fast or easy and it looks different for each family member, including for Betts and his 80-year-old mother.
"We all started at the same time in this chapter but our journeys are different," Betts said, adding, "I’ve continued to have mental health assistance and honestly, it’s allowed me to get to this point and not break down."
For Betts' cousin Will Chandler, a new arrival to the family has also helped him focus on getting through one day at a time.
"Honestly, the biggest blessing was my son coming up into the world," Chandler told ABC News. "That pretty much gave me the strength to keep pushing."
Altadena Girls offer a lifeline
When it comes to the young people of Altadena, an organization that was started immediately after the Eaton Fire is continuing to help young people, especially young women and teens.
Avery Colvert, 15, and her mother Lauren Sandidge kickstarted their nonprofit organization, Altadena Girls, by holding massive clothing drives 48 hours after the Eaton Fire began.
One year later, the organization has distributed over one million items to fire survivors for free, according to Sandidge.
"We just worked really quickly and fast to organize," Sandidge told ABC News. "And turned it into basically like, a department store and you forgot for a moment what was going on and it just had a moment of joy."
Now, Altadena Girls' mission is to open a community center for young girls to reclaim a sense of normalcy, while providing a space to do homework, offer essentials or simply, to dream big.
"I know we've distributed over a million items total for the year. It’s pretty amazing the impact we've had so far," Sandidge said of offering resources for free.
"We're all still trying to recover from what happened," Sandidge added. "We want to be able to support the girls so that the entire family can feel supported."
