A Plano woman watches helplessly as wildfires devastate Altadena, her former home. Her friends are displaced or lost their homes and need donations.
PLANO, Texas — From 1,400 miles away in Plano, Stephanie Bautista watches the news unfold about the wildfires devastating Los Angeles County, including the city of Altadena.
“Altadena is definitely one of those special places that I called home,” Bautista said. She lived there for years before moving to Texas. “Part of me has anxiety, and part of me hurts.”
The wildfires, which continue to rage across the region, have displaced many of her friends, including Lauren Sivley.
Born and raised in Dallas, Sivley moved to California seven years ago to pursue a career in acting and producing. She settled in Altadena, just three miles from Eaton Canyon, where the fires are still burning.
“It honestly is a miracle that we made it out at all,” Sivley said.
She evacuated her home a week ago when the fire grew from 100 acres to 200 acres in just ten minutes.
“FEMA is on the ground, and they’re not allowing us to go back because it’s not safe. Especially today. They’re saying the winds are supposed to pick back up,” Sivley explained.
As of now, the fire is just blocks from her home.
“Do I still have a house right now? Yes. Might I still have a house at the end of the week? I don’t know,” Sivley said.
Krystal Edwards, another friend of Bautista, evacuated with no notice. She packed two outfits, and her parents left with only the clothes on their backs and some documents.
“At 3 a.m. Wednesday morning, I could see [the wildfire] from my kitchen window,” Edwards said.
Her parents later returned to check on their family home, only to find it engulfed in flames.
“That’s our house,” Edwards’ mom said in a video showing the destruction. “It’s a total loss.”
The Edwards family lost everything inside of their multi-generational home of 60 years. They have not been able to return to sift through the ashes.
“It was my dad’s childhood home. He grew up in that house,” she said. Edwards was raised in that house, where she lived there for 30 years.
Now, she and her neighbors are in shock, needing help to recover.
“When you lose your home, you never expect that you’re going to need all these little things,” she said. “The GoFundMe pages are valuable resources for our families because they go directly to us. It’s so appreciated.”
Bautista has been checking in on her friends and family who are impacted by the wildfires. She encourages people to give directly to the victims.