Mental health presentation Friday at library

Workshop on emotional wellbeing and stress, Friday, January 17, 1:30 to 3 p.m., in the library Story Room. Presented by the LA County Department of Mental Health. Covers types of stress, its impact on life, and tips to manage stress effectively. For adults. No registration required.

- Brad Haugaard 

Tweens Cooking Class Wednesday at Library

Cooking class for tweens in the library Story Room, Wednesday, January 15, 3 to 4 p.m. Participants will bake a blueberry breakfast cake and eat their creations. For grades 6 to 8. Registration required by 10 a.m. on January 15. Limited to 12 participants. Register here.

- Brad Haugaard 

Donation Locations in Monrovia

There are at least two locations in Monrovia where people can donate supplies for the relief of fire victims.

Calvary Chapel Monrovia, at the corner of Myrtle and Cherry, is accepting food, water, drinks, and especially medical supplies for burns, such as gauze, bandages, Neosporin, and so forth, and also the things you see in the pictures above taken at the church’s warehouse.

Foothill Unity Center (790 W Chestnut) will be starting again Monday accepting food, clothing, blankets, pillows, sweets for little ones, and other essentials to support families and individuals hurt by the fire. Go to foothillunity.org to donate money.

- Brad Haugaard 

Report from local church on relief work in Altadena

Pastor Angel Baez of Calvary Chapel Monrovia and also a chaplain with the LA Sheriff's Department, reports in this Facebook video on what several churches and organizations are doing to help in Altadena.

- Brad Haugaard

Resources for Eaton Fire victims

Information and resources for those affected by the Eaton Fire from City Manager Dylan Feik.

President Biden declared a Federal Major Disaster Declaration in response to the fires. Funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Small Business Administration (SBA) are now available for those impacted by the fire. This relief includes $770 for essential items and larger direct grants to cover essential costs, medical bills, cars, and more. Small Business Administration low-interest loans are also available for impacted small business owners and residents.

The damage the Eaton Fire has caused our neighbors is unfathomable. Thousands have lost their homes, businesses, places of worship and personal belongings. Some have even lost loved ones. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. Below are resources that will be able to assist those navigating this difficult time.

Additionally, our City Council is already brainstorming ways the City of Monrovia can respond and help our neighbors during their time of need. In addition to resources being provided now, long-term efforts to house, employ, and care for our neighbors is an incredible task, and our community is up to the task!

Resources Available

Alexan Marmont
The Alexan Marmont at 1625 S Magnolia Ave is assisting those who lost their homes or whose homes are unlivable by helping them make the application approval and move-in process easier. They also offer furniture packages from one of their vendors as an option. For more information, please get in touch with Alexan Marmont at 626-275.8560.


Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Visit disasterassistance.gov or call 800-621-FEMA (3362)

• Disaster-related assistance may include:
• Rental Payments for temporary housing for those whose homes are unlivable
• Grants for home repairs and replacement of essential household items
• Unemployment payments for workers who temporarily lost jobs because of the disaster and do not qualify for state benefits
• Low-interest loans to cover residential losses not fully compensated by insurance
• Crisis Counseling for those who are traumatized by the disaster
• Advisory assistance for legal veterans benefits and social security matters.

If you are having trouble applying for assistance, please call Judy Chu's office at 626-304-0110.


Small Business Administration Disaster Loans

• Small Business Administration Disaster Loans help businesses repair or replace disaster-damaged property, inventory, and supplies.
• Homeowners and renters may also be eligible for SBA loans to repair or replace disaster-related damages to homes or personal property. (Homeowners can receive up to $500,000 to repair or replace real estate damage and up to $100,00 to replace personal property.
• For businesses and nonprofits who are interested in applying, please click here.

Nearby Shelter Locations

• Residents can call 211 for shelter information and social and health services.
• Los Angeles County residents who have been displaced from their homes or forced to evacuate due to wildfires can apply for temporary housing through an Airbnb and 211 LA Partnership here.
• Pasadena Convention Center - 300 E Green St, Pasadena, CA 91101. The Humane Society is on-site to accept pets for boarding. Service animals will be allowed inside the Convention Center.
• Pomona Fairplex - 1101 W McKinley Ave, Pomona, CA 91768. They can accept pets
• Arcadia Community Center Staging Area - 375 Campus Dr. Arcadia, CA 91007. This is not a Shelter, but residents can charge their devices, connect to Wi-Fi, and make shelter arrangements.
• For more shelter and animal evacuation locations, please click here

Unemployment Assistance

People who are out of work due to the fire may be eligible for unemployment benefits and may file for unemployment online at edd.ca.gov or my phone Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. by calling one of the numbers below:

• English: 1-800-300-5616
• Spanish: 1-800-326-8937
• Chinese (Cantonese): 1-800-547-3506
• Chinese (Mandarin): 1-866-303-0706
• Vietnamese: 1-800-547-205

Lost Documents
Please click here to view locations and resources to recoup lost documents.

Private Insurance
Please click here for information on filing a claim with private insurance companies.

Historic and Art Preservation
The Altadena, Pasadena, and the Sierra Madre areas are filled with historical artifacts and collections. If you need assistance, please get in touch with the Heritage Responders hotline at 202-661-8068. If you have questions about saving family treasures and heirlooms, don't hesitate to contact them at NHRpublichelpline@.culturalheritage.org


Donations and Volunteering
For a list of verified foundations seeking monetary donations to equip firefighters battling wildfires, please click here.

Please be wary of scam artists and identity thieves who may attempt to take advantage of disaster survivors.

City Facilities & Hours of Operation

City Hall, Public Works Yard, Fire Administration will remain closed through the weekend.

All City facilities will be open for regular hours on Monday and regular business operations will resume. The Hillside Wilderness Preserve will remain closed as long as the bad air quality continues.

Evacuation warnings lifted, Power almost fully restored, but gusty winds expected

Where the fire stopped. The right side of the canyon is Monrovia. It was barely touched.

City managers report on the fire for Jan. 11.

 Good afternoon, Monrovians,

As of 3:00 p.m. today, January 11, all Evacuation Warnings have been lifted. The Evacuation Order has been downgraded to an Evacuation Warning for those residing in the Hillside Wilderness Preserve. Welcome home everyone. 

Also great news...Edison is finalizing repairs to all power outages in Monrovia after nearly five days of outages.

However, the Eaton Fire remains active elsewhere in the community. Thus far it has burned 14,117 acres and is currently 15% contained with a portion of the increased containment along our Santa Anita Canyon. Yesterday, Fire Chief Jeremy Sanchez and I toured the Santa Anita Canyon burn area and were greeted by a strike team (5 engines) out of San Diego and many other smaller emergency vehicles who have all been keeping watch on the eastern edge of the fire. There were no visible flames or some in the area despite a light breeze, and there are none today. 

While the fire did manage to cross the service road and reach Monrovia city limits, as you can see from the photos below, the Eaton Fire reached the Bobcat Fire burn area where there was already little vegetation to burn. 

The weather forecast does include gusty northwest winds tonight through tomorrow, with gusts up to 30 mph with the possibility of another Santa Ana wind event this upcoming Tuesday, January 14. So teams won't be demobilizing anytime soon and the City remains ready to respond to any change in the incident.

- Brad Haugaard 

Foothill Unity Center distributes food to fire victims

Today Foothill Unity Center distributed food, clothing, blankets, pillows, sweets for little ones, and other essentials to support families and individuals hurt by the fire. The center’s Monrovia site (790 W Chestnut) will resume accepting in-kind donations starting Monday. To donate money visit foothillunity.org.

- Brad Haugaard 

Engineering students to visit high speed rail; Advocating for special ed funding

At its next meeting (agenda here) the Monrovia Board of Education will consider ..

~ Approving an extended field trip for Monrovia High honors engineering students to visit Fresno State University Engineering Department and tour the high speed rail construction site. Details. 

~ Approving a letter to elected officials advocating for full funding for special education programs. Details.

- Brad Haugaard

Owner of Jake's Roadhouse restaurant loses home in fire

Tony Banuelos, owner of the Monrovia restaurant, Jake's Roadhouse, lost his Altadena home in the Eaton Fire. Details. 

- Brad Haugaard

Calvary Chapel Monrovia helping Altadena recovery

Calvary Chapel Monrovia posts on Facebook that it has been providing food, water, and help cleaning up in Altadena.

“Our church remains a disaster relief hub for those in need of prayer, food, water and basic necessities.

“We are accepting any donations of food, water, toiletries, clothes, kid’s toys and books. [The church is located at the corner of Myrtle and Cherry]

“We will continue to see what more we can do to help those affected by the fires.

“Please continue to pray for the families and individuals that have lost their homes.”

- Brad Haugaard 

Eaton Fire held at Santa Anita Canyon; emergency communications; clean-up details

From City Manager Dylan Feik's latest update:

"The Eaton Fire continues to be held at the Santa Anita Canyon and with good weather ahead, our focus increases towards electricity restoration. Many residents had power restored yesterday and early this morning, and restoration will continue."

He adds, "There is widespread coverage about problems with emergency communication tools used by agencies including Southern California Edison, Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management, and others. We apologize for the confusion this has caused. Should we need to communicate changes to the status of the emergency, we will continue to use this City Manager's Update. And if we need to evacuate Monrovians at any point, the city will use every communication tool we have AND will send every city vehicle into evacuation areas and with lights, sirens and bullhorns."

Also ...

Feik said that while the city appreciates donations of food and supplies, the city is no longer accepting them. For information on how to help contact the Red Cross at 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767).

The city is cleaning up debris now. Street sweeping will continue as usual and parking restrictions will be enforced beginning Monday, Jan. 13.

For residents cleaning their own yards:

• Fill your green bins as much as possible. 
• Place larger logs, limbs or items in a neat pile in the parkway adjacent to your home.
• Place leaves in lawn bags and beginning on Monday, Jan. 13, city crews will pick them up and haul them off for you.

Monrovia Public Library and the Community Center will be open on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and closed on Sunday. City Hall, Public Works Yard, Fire Administration will remain closed today.

Athens Trash will be servicing those in the Evacuation Warning areas of Monrovia today (Friday, Jan. 10) and tomorrow (Saturday, Jan. 11). Leave trash bins out today or at the latest, Saturday morning.

- Brad Haugaard

Foothill Unity Center Food Distribution for Eaton Canyon Fire Victims

Foothill Unity Center will host a food distribution tomorrow from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at 191 N. Oak Ave., Pasadena, to support communities affected by the Eaton Canyon fire. Food, water, clothing, masks, and other essentials will be available. Donations are needed, including water, flashlights, batteries, face masks, new pillows, blankets, and dry pet food, which can be dropped off at the same location. Monetary donations can be made here.

- Brad Haugaard

Evacuation Orders Lifted - Mostly

Monrovia evacuation orders have now been lifted for all Monrovia residents, except those who reside in the Hillside Wilderness Preserve, according to City Manager Dylan Feik.

Evacuation warnings, however, remain in place for:

• North of Hillcrest and west of Myrtle, including all of Gold Hills.
• North of Hillcrest, east of Myrtle, and Norumbega Drive north of Greystone.

- Brad Haugaard

Fellowship Church opens its doors to fire victims

Monnrovia’s Fellowship Church (at Huntington and California) is opening its doors today, from 2 to 9 PM for anyone who needs Wi-Fi or a place to charge their phone, a safe place to rest, clean air, prayer, or just someone to talk to.

It also has a Fellowship Relief Fund, 100 percent of which goes to those now on need.

- Brad Haugaard

Lunch at La Noria

Lunch at La Noria, the taco stand at the corner of Foothill and May. Got the Thursday special, five taquitos for $9.95, and a soda for $3.25. Yummy!

- Brad Haugaard