‘Which Way Do I Go?’ Altadena Resident Awaits Answers After Eaton Fire

Everything is just in limbo — waiting for my insurance. House burned down all the way to the ashes. I don’t see an end to this. I left with pretty much nothing. And I grabbed my mom’s ashes. A portrait of my mom and a portrait of my kids. And that was all I got. And then the clothes on my back. It’s waiting here at Pasadena post office. “334 East Poppyfields.” Everybody here is either displaced or out of a home permanently. This is where they sent our mail after the post office burned down. Just my mortgage, papers, something from Spectrum. I’m not paying spectrum right now. I’m not doing that. Now I’m just homeless. I mean, it’s just the domino effect. Since the fire, I’ve been unemployed. My boss’s place burned down, also. All the machinery, everything’s gone. I lived at the Civic Center and then through my van. And then I did stay a couple nights at a friend’s house. This is my second hotel stay. FEMA approved me for a week stay. They only approve a week at a time. I had just the regular fire coverage. I didn’t have the displacement insurance to where they help you find a place. “Thank you for calling California FAIR Plan. Please leave a message and I will get back to you as soon as possible.” I’m still trying to get a hold of people and I still haven’t got a return phone call. That part is frustrating. I should be covered for the full amount of the policy. I don’t know if that’s going to be enough to get the house back to what it was, but I should be able to rebuild something. I just need to know something. Which way do I go. I kind of feel like if I don’t handle something soon, then I’m going to just be stuck back in the van.