Most people got to spend a rather normal holiday in their home, but for people in Paradise, California it was anything but normal. 50,000 people were displaced after wildfires destroyed the town. Many news organizations revisited the community this Christmas week. ABC’s Nightline talked to several residents (see above) about they are coping with being displaced. They report:
Pleas for help have been heard by many statewide.
The Spirit of Liberty Foundation flew up from Southern California with Santa to deliver gifts in time for Christmas. Paradise residents were overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers who brought the joy of Christmas to the Silver Dollar fairgrounds turned Red Cross shelter.
While the kindness of strangers and organizations has helped a lot, Mother Jones reports there is still a long way to go:
A month after the fire swept through Paradise and the surrounding Sierra Nevada foothills, taking 86 lives, consuming more than 150,000 acres, and destroying nearly 14,000 homes, there’s much talk of “repopulating” the town. But it’s clear that it will take years, not months, to rebuild Paradise—if it ever happens at all.
In a single day, Paradise experienced a mass exodus as nearly 27,000 people fled. Now they’re scattered—staying in shelters, crashing in homes of friends and family and strangers, living in their trucks or RVs. The cleanup and rebuilding effort is expected to cost billions of dollars and drag on for years. Many Paradise residents, who are seeking shelter and work wherever they can find them, can’t wait that long.
This story from ESPN about the high school’s football team is also a must-watch.
As we sit down w/ our families this #ChristmasEve my thoughts are w/ those who lost everything to recent wildfires. I had the unbelievable privilege of working with @espn to tell the story of the football team at #Paradise High School. #CampFire https://t.co/paey4mRYkP
— Kayna Whitworth (@KaynaWhitworth) December 25, 2018