Everything Becky Schlikerman and Kim Janssen own can now fit into two pieces of carry-on luggage.
On Tuesday, as the ominous glow of the Eaton fire crept closer to their home in Altadena, Calif., Schlikerman and Janssen prepared to evacuate.
They packed clothes and other essentials and grabbed what personal treasures they could cram into their bags, including photographs and a family cookbook written by Janssen’s mom, who died last year.
They spent the night with friends. The next day their house was a pile of smoldering rubble, their cul-de-sac charred.
“There was still houses on fire in our street, our house was still smoldering,” Schlikerman told the Sun-Times on Sunday.
“It felt like a scene from hell,” Janssen added.
Schlikerman and Janssen, who are both former Sun-Times reporters, are among many former Chicagoans who have been displaced due to wildfires still raging in the Los Angeles area. At least 24 people have been killed. About 150,000 residents in Los Angeles County are under evacuation orders.
At least 10,000 structures, many of them homes, have been burned. The Eaton fire is still burning in Altadena, northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, but it is now 27% contained, according to officials.
By Sunday morning, Cal Fire reported the Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst fires had consumed more than 62 square miles, an area larger than San Francisco.
With no home to return to Schlikerman and Janssen are now living at a hotel. They’re trying to figure out the next steps for themselves, Schlikerman’s mother Fanny Sernik, wno fled Israel last year and who was living with the married couple, and their beloved pets. The loss of the house — which they bought about two years ago — has left them in limbo.
The house was insured, and Schlikerman and Janssen plan to rebuild, but they know it could take years before they can return. That’s assuming everything goes smoothly with their insurance claim and no other emergencies pop up, Janssen said.
“We have to find somewhere to stay in the meantime. Right now, we plan to rebuild, and we would love to stay, but it’s too soon to know for sure,” Janssen said. “We have to deal with insurance, and all of that and who knows what life will bring.”
Schlikerman, 40, and Janssen, 47, have been together for about 15 years. Both lived in Chicago for more than a decade before moving to Los Angeles in 2019.
They were drawn to the foothill neighbhorhood for its affordability, tight-kit community and location at the edge of an area teeming with wildlife. Their “dream house” attracted all sorts of four-legged critters. Last year they found a black bear on their back deck.
“It’s incredibly beautiful, but it’s also a place where the community is really beautiful and supportive,” Janssen said. “It’s one of the few places where if you have a good job and you’re middle class you can buy a home.”
Neighbors have been keeping tabs on one another through a group text, Schlikerman and Janssen said. They share leads on resources, status of the fires and other useful information.
“Everyone is just trying to stay together, stay supportive of each other and try to navigate this really challenging situation and also process what we are going through,” Schlikerman said, adding that some of their neighbors are dealing with more than just losing their home.
“Everyone has a story in our community, and some of our neighbors their lives are quite complicated. Some people have elderly parents that they are taking care of, young children.”
Schlikerman and Janssen said they have received an outpouring of support from people in Los Angeles and back in Chicago. The couple encouraged anyone looking to help to donate to organizations assisting the thousands who have been displaced.
But Schlikerman added that even a show of solidarity can be uplifting.
“Messages of support are helpful, and it’s amazing to feel the love in this really tragic and difficult time,” she said.
Contributing: Associated Press