Altadena renter struggles to find financial help after Eaton Fire destroys her home

It was a bittersweet reunion for Ciressa Henderson after she ran into her next door neighbor Greg for the first time since the Eaton Fire ripped through their Altadena cul-de-sac. 

"Everything is burned up," Henderson said. 

While her neighbor's house on Loma Alta Drive is still standing, Henderson's home, which she rented for 25 years, is gone. 

She evacuated the night of the fire with her younger sister, with only the clothes on their back. She has renter's insurance, but over the last 2.5 months, it's barely paid out, she said.

"It's a small policy," Henderson said. "It does not cover anything. They are not willing to pay out. It's $16,000."

She thought she would have better luck with FEMA but said she hasn't received any funds because of her insurance policy. 

"I applied on the eighth and I was denied on the ninth," Henderson said. "I've been denied since the ninth."

Henderson has moved six times since the fire. She's now paying double, sometimes triple, the amount of when she rented her Altadena home for $1580 a month. 

"Evacuated to Pasadena to my cousins," she said. "Then we ended up in Santa Ana, then Montebello, then Fullerton, Valencia, Monterrey Park, and now we're in Monrovia."

Luckily, on Monday, a FEMA representative agreed to meet her on the burned property in another attempt to get the financial help she desperately needs. 

FEMA said it has approved $104 million for eligible wildfire victims so far. More than 272,000 survivors registered, including Henderson. She said she hopes to return to the Altadena cul-de-sac one day. 

"I hope it leads to something," she said. "But I celebrate the wins, every day. This is a win."