Base Camps Set Up to Respond to LA Fires

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA — Samaritan’s Purse and Billy Graham Rapid Response Team chaplains have set up base camps at two California churches to serve the victims of the Eaton and Palisades Fires.

These blazes and others in the LA County area have claimed dozens of lives in recent days and burned over 15,000 structures. As the infernos have already tragically consumed tens of thousands of acres, many homes, schools, and livelihoods have been reduced to ashes.

Lindsey Allen – Samaritan’s Purse:

There’s currently multiple fires burning here in Southern California, and they are still actively burning. And thousands and thousands of homes have been destroyed because of these fires. So today we had equipment depart from our warehouse in Fullerton, California, and it arrived this morning to assist homeowners with that initial cleanup of recovering their belongings.

Matt Campbell – Samaritan’s Purse:

This is our command center. And so we are starting to get that in preparation for the volunteers that are coming in. And we can go out and serve the community as quickly as possible. Once we are given that green light to go into the community to serve.

Lindsey Allen:

We currently have two sites that are being set up, one in Los Angeles to assist with the Palisade Fire and one in Pasadena to assist with the evening fire.

David Cohen – Volunteer:

So today we helped them set up the base camp here. I was a firefighter, along with two of the other guys that are here today were firefighters in the Palisades. When you lose your home or your business, you can be in a sad, dark place, and to have some positivity during that time can really mean a lot.

As a Christian, we want to help others out. The reason we’re doing it is to show God’s love in a personal way. So it’s nice to do that with other people that have that mindset.

Matt Campbell:

We’d love to have your prayers and continue to pray for this community, as they have a lot coming up in the next weeks and months and years ahead.

---

Samaritan’s Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan’s Purse has helped meet the needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God’s love through His Son, Jesus Christ. The organization serves the Church worldwide to promote the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Samaritan’s Purse International Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) program is committed to meeting the critical needs of victims of war, poverty, famine, disease, and natural disaster. We stand ready to respond at a moment’s notice whenever and wherever disaster strikes. The DART specializes in providing water, food, shelter, and medical care while sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ.

CONTACT: Gabrielle Bouquet, news@samaritan.org

---

Read more news onNon Profit / Faith Based Organizations, California Wildfires, and Disaster Relief on Missions Box.

---