Red Cross helping California wildfire victims as dangerous fire conditions continue

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Beverly Turham was watching her neighbor’s ten-week-old dog, Coco, when the wildfires forced her to evacuate, so she brought the dog with her. Red Cross volunteer Alexis Helgeson enjoys a happy moment with them at the Pasadena, California, shelter. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Red Cross disaster spiritual care volunteer Collene Thompson plays with one-year-old Mia at the Pasadena, California, shelter. Mia’s mother Rosa, was forced to evacuate with her two children as wildfires swept her Altadena neighborhood. Red Cross shelters provide children with a place to play and activities to keep them busy to help parents cope with the challenge of beginning to rebuild their lives. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Red Cross volunteers are providing hot meals to hundreds of people seeking refuge at the Pasadena, California, shelter. Red Cross shelters provide a safe haven for those affected as they face the challenge of rebuilding their lives. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Hundreds of Red Cross volunteers from around the country have arrived in California to provide disaster and recovery assistance. Red Cross warehouse volunteers are receiving truckloads of disaster supplies and organizing them for delivery to the hardest hit areas. Pallets of shelter supplies ranging from food and comfort kits to diapers and snacks and medical supplies are arriving in huge quantities to help those affected as they begin to rebuild their lives. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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In all of her 101 years, Helen Reese had never experienced anything like the wildfires that forced her to evacuate her Sierra Madre, California, apartment. Here she shares her story with Red Cross volunteer Helen Gasparyan at the shelter in Pasadena. Ms. Reese has lived a full life as a musician, and when she was younger, a professional dancer. In fact, she was the Los Angeles Dairy Queen at the 1949 fair. “The Red Cross volunteers here at the shelter have treated me beautifully,” she said. “I can’t believe how kind they have been to me, it’s like a dream.” Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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Volunteer Glen Williams visits with Jacquelyn at the Red Cross shelter in Pasadena, California, following the wildfires that devastated Los Angeles County. Jacquelyn was just finishing up a semester at college and was moving from student housing with her son, DeMarco, when the wildfires changed her plans. “It’s almost like being in a hotel,” Jacquelyn said. “All meals are provided, and my son is happy and plays with other children. We know we’re safe here. I’m not sure what my next step is, but I know that in the meantime I’m being taken care of.” Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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American Red Cross disaster health services volunteer Julin Wood has been busy at the Pasadena, California shelter where hundreds of people are staying after the fires forced them from their homes. Red Cross nurses provide critical basic medical support for those affected by disaster, including initial examinations, and often replaces prescriptions and durable medical equipment left behind in the rush to safety. Here she checks Kay Bailey’s blood pressure. Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

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In preparation for delivering individual assistance to those who lost their homes, volunteers Peter Casas and Piet Hagenaars are using sophisticated satellite mapping technology to determine homes that are deemed to have suffered major damage or are destroyed They are working with the disaster assessment team at Red Cross National Headquarters,. “It would take us a very long time and boots on the ground, in addition to a large financial commitment, to map the damage the traditional way. But by using satellite technology and computer mapping, we can do the job quickly and deliver more funds in less time to those who really need help from the Red Cross when they need the assistance to rebuild their lives.” Photo by Scott Dalton/American Red Cross

January 22, 2025

Fires have destroyed more than 15,000 structures

As dangerous fire weather conditions continue to blanket southern California, thousands are struggling after losing everything. The American Red Cross is there, providing help and hope with necessities like food, shelter, emotional care, recovery planning and financial assistance.

More than 15,000 structures have already been destroyed and more could be threatened this week. Unhealthy air quality warnings have been issued as winds continue to blow ash from the fire areas. Everyone should take precautions.

USEFUL LINKS:

Visit these links for more information about Red Cross and community resources and follow us for up-to-date information about the Red Cross response in California.

Get Red Cross help.
Visit 211LA for help and resources
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Help find a missing loved one.
Apply for FEMA assistance.
Schedule a blood donation.
Go to CA.gov/LAfires for information and resources from state, local and federal government.
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RED CROSS RESPONSE Eighty-eight-year-old Fay Austin was forced to evacuate as wildfires swept through her Altadena neighborhood, destroying her home. See her story here. Read more stories here.

This morning, more than 600 evacuees woke up in Red Cross shelters, where disaster health volunteers are caring for minor injuries and replacing things like eyeglasses and medications, and mental health workers are providing emotional support to those experiencing unimaginable loss. Caseworkers are helping shelter residents plan their next steps and connect them with other community resources. The top priority is housing, but people also need help with transportation, health care, childcare and other challenges.

The Red Cross is working closely with local officials, government agencies and other nonprofits to coordinate relief efforts and make recovery plans, including Disaster Recovery Centers in Los Angeles and Pasadena where people can access resources and aid from multiple organizations. Red Cross teams have also formed special task forces with government and community partners to support immediate and long-term needs such as feeding, veteran care and housing.

Communities are slowly reopening, and Red Crossers will be there with support and relief supplies to help as people return. As many as 730 Red Cross responders are working day and night to make sure people are not alone. Since the fires started over a week ago, the Red Cross has provided more than 10,000 overnight shelter stays and almost 90,000 meals and snacks with the help of partners.

GET HELP In addition to assisting those currently in our shelters, we are also providing financial assistance to residents who lived within the fire perimeters of Eaton, Palisades, Hurst, and Kenneth as defined by Cal OES. If you receive a call, text or email from the Red Cross, please follow the instructions provided in the message. If you lived within the fire perimeters and aren’t sure you received a message, please call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to sign up. To learn more about financial assistance, please visit redcross.org/gethelp.

We strongly encourage people to apply for federal aid at disasterassistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362. It’s important to know that eligibility for Red Cross assistance is not connected to FEMA. You don’t need approval from FEMA to get help from the Red Cross, and receiving money from the Red Cross won’t impact your eligibility for FEMA assistance or insurance payouts.

HOW YOU CAN HELP Families are depending on the Red Cross for assistance now, and we need your support. Help people affected by wildfires in California in 2025 by visiting redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or texting the word CAWILDFIRES to 90999 to make a donation. Your donation enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters.

As the wildfires continue to burn and dangerous winter weather spreads across the country, the number of Red Cross blood drive cancelations has grown, impacting thousands of lifesaving blood donations. Donors of all blood types — particularly type O negative blood donors and those giving platelets — are needed to help save lives. Where it is safe to do so, we encourage people to schedule a blood donation appointment by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

Many people are generously offering their time, and our team is working through a high volume of volunteer applications. To get involved, go to https://www.redcross.org/volunteer and sign up today so we can connect you with specific areas of need in your community.

Our first priority is to provide shelter and support to those affected — and financial donations are the quickest and best way to help those who need it most. Red Cross shelters cannot accept donations of goods at this time. Please call 211 or visit https://211la.org/LA-Wildfires to find out which organizations are accepting these types of donations. Due to health code regulations, Red Cross shelters cannot accept donations of homecooked meals or food items not prepared in a commercial kitchen.

As the climate crisis worsens, disasters like wildfires and hurricanes are becoming more frequent and intense. This means the Red Cross is now launching twice as many relief operations for major disasters than a decade ago.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Through the generosity of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the American Red Cross is prepared before disaster strikes. ADGP and Disaster Responder members help secure a reliable funding base for disaster relief services that enables the Red Cross to respond immediately, meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by

Mission Leader Members: Amazon; American Airlines; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; Costco Wholesale; State Farm; Truist Foundation

ADGP $1M Members: Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Bank of America; Caterpillar Foundation; Chobani; CMA CGM Foundation; Delta Air Lines; Elevance Health Foundation; Enterprise Mobility Foundation; FedEx; Lilly Endowment Inc.; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; McDonald’s Corporation; Merck; Microsoft; Nationwide Foundation; The Pfizer Foundation; Six Four Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; Wells Fargo

ADGP $500k Members: ALDI; Altria Group; American Express; Aon; Baxter International Foundation; Boeing; Bread Financial; Capital One; Chick-fil-A; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; DHL Supply Chain; Edison International; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Philanthropy; Fox Corporation; GE Aerospace; General Motors; Google.org; HCA Healthcare; The Home Depot Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; ; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Mastercard; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; Paul Davis Restoration; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; PetSmart Charities; Southeastern Grocers Gives Foundation & Southeastern Grocers, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie; Stryker; Suburban Propane; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco; Zoetis Foundation

Disaster Responder Members: 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe Foundation; The AES Corporation; Albemarle Corporation; The Allstate Foundation; American Tire Distributors; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works;; Build-A-Bear Foundation; Canadian National Railway; CarMax; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Cisco and Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; The Deluxe Foundation; DENSO North America Foundation; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Discover; Dollar General; Dollar Tree and Family Dollar; Duke Energy; Erie Insurance; Equitable; Fifth Third Foundation; FirstEnergy Corporation; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC;; HP Foundation; International Paper; Invitation Homes; Johnson & Johnson Foundation; Keurig Dr Pepper; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; L’Oréal; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo ; LKQ; Macy’s, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Martin Marietta; Masco Corporation; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; Neiman Marcus Group; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Norfolk Southern; Northrop Grumman Foundation; Northwestern Mutual; Novartis; Old Dominion Freight Line; Pacific Life Foundation;; Prudential; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reliance, Inc.; Reynolds American Inc.; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Salesforce; Santander Bank and Santander Consumer USA Foundation Inc. ; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Stephens; Tennant Foundation; U-Haul International; Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation; US Foods; Yum! Brands; Zurich

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.