The Latino community is taking action to help support victims of the deadly wildfires in Los Angeles County.
A host of Latino-owned businesses, organizations and community leaders throughout LA are offering resources, collecting donations for distribution and raising funds to provide relief to the victims of numerous wildfires.
There were four ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area as of Sunday: the Palisades fire in the Pacific Palisades area, the Eaton fire north of Pasadena, the Kenneth fire straddling Los Angeles and Ventura counties and the Hurst fire in Sylmar, northwest for San Fernando.
A woman walks past the remains of homes destroyed by the Palisades fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, January 11, 2025.
Carlos Barria/Reuters
According to county officials, the Palisades fire has destroyed more than 5,000 structures, while the Eaton fire has damaged or destroyed an estimated 7,000 structures. More than 100,000 people have been forced to evacuate their homes as Santa Ana winds further worsen the situation. At least 16 fire-related deaths are being investigated by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, and many people are injured.
In Los Angeles County, more than 4.8 million people are Hispanic or Hispanic, the latest U.S. Census data shows. With deep roots in the region, many Latinos have taken initiatives to mobilize the local community and provide support.
“A friend of mine texted me and told me her house had burned down,” Corissa Hernandez, a small business owner, told ABC News. “I can’t even imagine losing everything I’ve worked for in my personal space, so I immediately went to social media and just sent out a call to action.”
Volunteers work to help victims affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles, January 11, 2025.
Corissa Hernandez
After learning from local city leaders about the need for food, water and masks, Hernandez announced on social media that she was helping collect those items at Nativo HLP, the Mexican food restaurant she owns in Highland Park.
That initial endeavor expanded tremendously because of the Latino community, according to Hernandez.
“It’s such an honor and a humbling experience to see us all come together for the most vulnerable among us, and it’s just one of those moments where you just feel so proud to be a part of LA and this community,” she said.
Hernandez is a board member of the Independent Hospitality Coalition, an advocacy group for bars and restaurants in Los Angeles. She said several restaurants and chefs who are part of that network responded to her call and began connecting her to shelters and evacuation centers that needed resources.
Volunteers work to help victims affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles, January 11, 2025.
Corissa Hernandez
Hernandez ultimately partnered with Guerilla Tacos DTLA and Guelaguetza, two other Mexican restaurants, to collect donations and deliver meals to people in need, she said. Together they have created a central hub for all their operations and donations.
“I can’t take credit for what’s developed,” Hernandez said. “Since then, we have collectively distributed over 1,500 hot meals to evacuation centers and fire departments, hundreds of donations have gone out, and this has been in collaboration with my network.”
Latino community members in LA have gotten creative with their efforts to help provide mutual aid. Several taquerias are offering free tacos to first responders, LA Taco first reported, and Latinx Therapy, a Latino mental health center, is organizing pro-bono providers to offer free therapy to Latino families affected by the wildfires.
Volunteers work to help victims affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles, January 11, 2025.
Corissa Hernandez
Support from the Latino community also comes from around the world. California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday that firefighters from Mexico were arriving to join the “more than 10,000 crews already on the ground.”
“California is deeply grateful for President @ClaudiaShein’s support as we work to contain the wildfires in Los Angeles,” Newsom wrote on X.
A spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, told ABC News that a total of 70 firefighters from Mexico, including three information officers, arrived Saturday afternoon.
Meanwhile, in the Boyle Heights neighborhood, the Las Fotos Project, a nonprofit organization that mentors teenage girls and gender-expansive youth through photography, has created a bulletin-like database on its website where fire victims can describe their current needs and connect directly with people who can help them.
“We always say we find power in our stories and we find power in our communities. I really hope this database can sustain people [and] long-term support,” Helen Alonzo Hurtado, director of social enterprises for the Las Fotos Project, told ABC News. “Two to three weeks from now, when people are settling into their temporary housing, and they’re aware , whatever it is, those needs, they can put it there and then the community members can respond.”
Alonzo Hurtado said that despite hosting community wellness days, the Las Fotos Project is not an emergency response nonprofit and is not equipped to mobilize in such a capacity. Still, she said, the group was motivated to help victims, including some of their own members who lost their homes and were displaced in the Eaton fire.
“We’re starting to see how many Latino families and black families in Altadena were affected,” she said. “When you think about that community, it’s been home to a lot of working-class people who have been able to build generational wealth, and it was just lost overnight.”
The Latino-led group hopes to make an impact with its database and further rally the community to help those in need.
“In our culture we have the kermeses [parties to fundraise for low-income community members, usually for funerals]and we have these initiatives to come together to support each other.” Alonzo Hurtado said. “We’re seeing so many people affected and we’re mobilizing not just for the Latino community, but for all the people who are affected.”
