Eaton Fire survivors joined local, county and state leaders on the wildfire’s first anniversary, saying they refuse to accept the status quo as recovery is failing survivors.
At Wednesday’s news conference, Joy Chen, smoke damage survivor and executive director of Eaton Fire Survivors Network, said money has been the deciding factor in recovery, and survivor families without wealth have drained their retirement savings, maxed credit cards and face crushing debt just to keep a roof over their heads.
“When survivors moved together, something amazing happened, the money started to move,” Chen said. “And just the first year since the fire, our community unlocked over $100 million in delayed insurance payments, and more is coming.”…