Shelter for residents displaced by Eaton Fire opens in Duarte

A new shelter for people displaced by the devastating Eaton Fire opened in Duarte, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Friday.

Fire evacuees living at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium will relocate to the gymnasium at the county’s Pamela Park in Duarte.

As of Tuesday night, 149 people were living at the shelter, which at its peak housed approximately 1,140 evacuees, the Long Beach Press Telegram reported.

When the American Red Cross assumed management of the Pasadena shelter, auditorium officials asked that the facility be returned to the city of Pasadena shortly after the first week in February, according to the Red Cross.

The city granted the shelter an extension until a new location was secured.

The site was always intended as a temporary shelter, Pasadena spokeswoman Lisa Derderian told the Los Angeles Times. The goal was to transition the shelter to a smaller site as the number of evacuees decreased.

Every household in the shelter has an assigned Red Cross “shelter resident transition specialist” who provides assistance that includes working with county staff to provide transportation and ensure that each resident has a clear plan, according to published reports.

Red Cross spokesperson Angel Sauceda told the Times that the shelter will operate “until all the residents have a plan in place to get them to their next housing solution.”

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