Week of Jan. 9, 2025

From the editor’s desk

Five fires continue to rage in and near Los Angeles. This morning, the Los Angeles Times reported: “Five people have died, more than 2,000 structures have burned and at least 130,000 residents are under evacuation orders.”

Gov. Joe Lombardo announced yesterday that Nevada would send 25 engines and more than 100 personnel to the region to help combat the fires.

KOLO Channel 8 reported:

That includes two trucks and eight personnel each from the Reno Fire Department and Truckee Meadows Fire & Rescue. …

The Sparks Fire Department is also sending a strike team leader to be assisted by a Carson City Fire Department fire official.

Crews and equipment from Elko, the Nevada Division of Forestry, and other agencies in our region were also slated to be dispatched.

There are several ways that individuals can help from here, as well.

LION Publishers—one of the industry groups for independent news outlets like ours—pointed out in today’s newsletter:

The essential work our members do is never more visible than during natural disasters like this. Among the many publishers covering this fast-moving and developing story, we’ve seen important work informing communities from The Eastsider, LAist, Community Forward Redlands, and CalMatters, among several others.

Now would be a great time to make a donation to any of these crucial local news sources.

A SoCal ABC affiliate posted details about how to donate to the LA Food Bank, the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation and other groups, along with a fire-specific wish list of items the Salvation Army could use in the region right now.

I checked in with the American Red Cross of Northern Nevada Chapter this morning. The agency has hundreds of volunteers deployed in Los Angeles to help people who’ve been displaced, has set up four shelters, and plans to add more.

“We anticipate being there a long time,” said Adam Whitaker, the Red Cross regional chief development officer for Nevada and Utah. (For some perspective on what “a long time” might mean, he answered his phone today from Lahaina, Hawaii, where fires caused widespread damage in August 2023, and aid is ongoing.)

The two most urgent things the Red Cross is asking Northern Nevadans for are monetary donations and volunteers. To donate, visit redcross.org/help; call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767); or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. 

Regarding the call for volunteers, Whitaker said the appeal is to existing Red Cross helpers, largely to assist people in shelters. The training to become a volunteer largely takes place online, and Whitaker said that, at times such as this, training can be expedited. Learn more at redcross.org/volunteer.

Take care,

—Kris Vagner, managing editor