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Eaton Fire survivors demand housing funds from SoCal Edison
Feds arrest 4 in connection with New Year's Eve bomb plot
By Joe Taglieri
joet@beaconmedianews.com
urvivors of the deadly Eaton Fire and local officials on Tuesday called on Southern California Edison to pay for rental housing as many displaced Altadena residents struggle with disaster recovery. A coalition of fire survivors, activists, elected officials and area residents gathered nearly a year after the January wildfire to warn that recovery has stalled because families are struggling to stay housed. According to the Eaton Fire Survivors Network, Edison bears financial responsibility because the utility's equipment sparked the blaze. According to research by the fire-survivor advocacy nonprofit Department of Angels, 8 in 10 families affected by the Eaton Fire remain displaced with most running out of housing funds. In addition to the Eaton Fire Survivors Network, the coalition includes the Eaton Fire Collaborative Leadership Council, the Clergy Community Coalition and the Altadena Town Council, along with support from the California Community Foundation. The groups represent more than 10,000 survivors, over 200 nonprofit organizations, more than 150 faith leaders and the 40,000 residents of Altadena, where the fire did the most damage. “We are not here in anger. We are here in love for our community,” EFSN Executive Director Joy Chen said in a statement. “When
joet@beaconmedianews.com
Andrew Wessels from the Eaton Fire Survivors Network speaks during the organization's press conference Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. | Photo courtesy of the EFSN/YouTube
a company's fire destroys or contaminates homes, that company has a responsibility to keep families housed until they can get back home.” The survivors group is asking Edison to immediately provide temporary housing support against obligations it already owes, describing the situation as a cash-flow problem — Edison has millions in liquid cash and taxpayer-funded
protections, while options for displaced residents are dwindling. Families say they have received no housing assistance from Edison, according to the EFSN. “Every other California investor-owned utility advanced emergency housing relief after causing a wildfire, even without these protections,” Chen said. “Through the Wildfire Fund, stateSee Fire survivors Page 31
approved rate hikes, and nearly one billion dollars in back pay, Californians have absorbed Edison's wildfire risk. Edison is reporting sharply higher profits, while survivors — who are also ratepayers — are bearing the cost of this fire in real time.” SCE spokesman David Eisenhauer defended the utility's efforts to help with recovery from the wildfire. "We are fully committed to helping the Altadena community recover," Eisenhauer said. "We understand people and businesses impacted by the Eaton Fire are eager to move forward and SCE’s Wildfire Recovery Compensation Program offers a way to help them do that — with fair resolutions and fast payments. Funds in SCE's WRCP can be used for interim housing. We encourage people to apply and see their offers. In moments like this, Edison’s role is clear: Help people recover and move forward. That’s what our neighbors expect." Citing a Los Angeles Times investigation, the EFSN noted that the utility has been allowed to shift the full cost of settlements above the Wildfire Fund onto ratepayers. State law gives Edison control over what it pays survivors and ensures the company has the financial support to do that without delay, group members said. Nothing in that system prevents Edison from advancing housing support now.
By Joe Taglieri
F
ederal authorities have foiled an alleged New Year's Eve bomb plot in Southern California following the arrests of four people in San Bernardino County, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday. The defendants were arrested Friday in Lucerne Valley and were allegedly connected with Turtle Island Liberation Front, an offshoot of a pro-Palestinian group, DOJ officials said. The four suspects were identified as Audrey Carroll, 30, of South Los Angeles; Zachary Aaron Page, 32, of Torrance; Dante Gaffield, 24, of South LA; and Tina Lai, 41, of Glendale. Each are charged in Los Angeles federal court with conspiracy and possession of an unregistered destructive device. The four were expected to appear before a magistrate judge Monday afternoon in downtown LA. FBI officials said a fifth person believed to be connected to the same group was arrested in New Orleans for allegedly planning a separate attack. The California suspects were arrested Friday in the Mojave Desert as they unloaded bomb-making materials from their cars. They allegedly were preparing to construct and test explosives intended for attacks throughout the region at logistics businesses, according to the DOJ. Officials said Carroll developed a detailed plan See Bomb plot Page 02
last month to bomb at least five locations across Southern California on New Year's Eve. “The Turtle Island Liberation Front — a far-left, proPalestine, anti-government, and anti-capitalist group — was preparing to conduct a series of bombings against multiple targets in California beginning on New Year’s Eve. The group also planned to target ICE agents and vehicles,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “This was an incredible effort by our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the FBI to ensure Americans can live in peace. We will continue to pursue these terror groups and bring them to justice.” Prosecutors allege the plot included planting backpacks filled with explosive devices at multiple businesses that were set to blow up simultaneously at midnight on New Year's Eve. The group also allegedly planned to target U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and vehicles with pipe bombs in January or February, said Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California. "Carroll stated that some of those plans would quote 'take some of them out and scare the rest,'" Essayli told reporters Monday. Essayli also said the suspects were arrested in the desert near Twentynine Palms before they were able