After former Vice President Kamala Harris left office on Monday and returned to California, her first stop was Altadena, where she met with volunteers and firefighters working to put out the Eaton Fire.
Hours after attending President Trump’s inauguration, Harris and former second gentleman Doug Emhoff landed at Burbank Airport and headed to a former auto repair shop in Altadena.
Harris and Emhoff met with volunteers from World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit founded by chef Jose Andres that distributes free meals in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades. Then they helped hand out the food around the time the dinner rush started.
“The volunteers who were there, some of them homeless, are working to care for strangers,” Harris said. “These are people who understand the strength and value of community.”
Harris’ visit comes as Los Angeles County announced it has lifted all mandatory evacuation orders in Altadena. The county also increased the estimated number of buildings damaged by the fire, with 9,418 destroyed and 1,069 damaged.
Ann, a 72-year-old Pasadena resident who did not want her full name published in the media, stopped at the World Central Kitchen property to buy dinner before returning to her home near the Rose Bowl.
To her surprise, the volunteer who handed her a plate of beef and rice, an orange, and a plastic bag of utensils was a former vice president.
She placed her bag on the asphalt outside the garage and immediately called her sister and said, “This is too great.”
“Kamala Harris is cooking!” she said in a voicemail message. “It’s 5:15. If you hurry, you might get here!”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff met with members of Fire Department 12 in Altadena on Monday.
(Karlin Stiel/For the Times)
Harris and Emhoff then visited Los Angeles County Fire Station No. 12 on Lincoln Street and met with firefighters who had been on duty overnight on Jan. 7, when the Eaton Fire broke out.
“Moments of crisis reveal the heroes in us,” Harris said. She said at least a dozen firefighters were left homeless in the Eaton and Palisades fires.
“California’s firefighters have proven time and time again that they are the best at this type of work, responding to moments of unprecedented crisis and performing their duties with extraordinary courage and sacrifice. “We’re doing it,” Harris said.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Malone, one of the firefighters who met with Harris, said he was “very grateful” for the federal aid that President Biden approved before leaving office.
The agreement will cover 100% of California’s fire management and debris removal costs for the next six months, an increase from the typical federal contribution of 75%. Gov. Gavin Newsom requested the funding after meeting with Biden in Los Angeles the day after the fires broke out.
“It was a really emotional moment for me because the federal government is going to help rebuild this area,” Marrone said. “I’m grateful for that.”
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