Disaster Recovery Resources

I live in Southern California. Disasters are a not-uncommon facet of life here. I have many friends who have been impacted by fires, I have had to evacuate on occasion, and I was raised by the Department Safety Coordinator of the LADWP (who once had to rush us home from Big Bear to respond to the Northridge earthquake). Here are some of the disaster resources I have made or collected over the years. Page is in Progress, more resources will be added as I collect them.

January 2025 LA Fire Resources

• Mutual Aid LA Masterlist of Resources
• Community-made resource list on cryptpad
• Resources compiled by/for Assembly District 41 - <<<That is crazy comprehensive; provides direct support for people impacted by the Eaton fire because that's in that assembly district, but includes resources that would be useful after any disaster.
• LAist news roundup and cheat sheet
• Cal Fire website - includes regularly updated evacuation maps
• LADWP Power Outage Map
• SCE Power Outage Map
• Glendale Water and Power Outage Map
• LA Times article with advice to evacuees and people who lost homes
• U-Haul Storage available for free for evacuees for 30 days
• South Coast Air Quality Index Map - Updating hourly.
• LA County Wildfire Evacuation preparation guide
• LA County Emergency Site - Includes current evacuation zones and ARCGIS maps that can be expanded to show what zone you're in. Helpful if you get another accidental emergency alert - check before evacuating if you don't know of a fire near you.
• Free CA Department of Insurance Workshops for evacuees - January 18th and 19th in Santa Monica, January 25th and 26th in Pasadena.
• Learn about and report price gouging - landlords are gouging after the fires, this is illegal and they can be subject to fines and prosecution; check the information at the Attorney General's office to learn about and report instances of price gouging.

Post-Disaster

Forms

• Post-Disaster Expense Tracking Worksheet - This is an Excel sheet with a list of expenses to track after a disaster; everything from pet care to hotel costs to laundry is included. Keep track of these expenses and claim them with your insurance company.
• Possession Inventory - This is an Excel book (two sheets, instructions on the first sheet and form on the second) for tracking an inventory of the possessions you had in your home during the disaster. Check your computer and phone for photos that you may have had prior to the disaster to get a more complete inventory; if you have not evacuated yet, go through your home room by room and take a video slowly panning over the whole room before you leave so that you have documentation of what was in the home when you left.

Resource Documents

• FEMA Post-Disaster Recovery Guide

Pre-Disaster

Preparation

• Keeping track of Important Papers - this guide explains the basics of collecting important documents for people who have trouble with organization, and at the bottom of the page explains how to put together a rudimentary bug-out-bag by gathering your important documents and sentimental objects in one place.

Forms

• This is the same inventory sheet as earlier, but fill it out before a disaster to keep with your important documents.