Here's How to Help Victims of the California Wildfires (UPDATED)
There are numerous ways to donate money and supplies to those affected by the Woolsey and Camp Fires.
UPDATE (Nov. 13, 2018, 11:20 a.m.): Forty-four people have died since three wildfires, Camp, Woolsey, and Hill Fires, broke out late last week in California, making this the deadliest fire in the state's history in addition to the largest.
The original story continues below.
Wildfires continue to devastate Northern and Southern California, with a death toll of 31 people as of Monday, November 12, NBC News reports. The Woolsey Fire in Southern California has killed two people, while the Camp Fire in Northern California has killed 29, and according to Time, this is the joint deadliest fire on record in the state, along with the 1933 Griffith Park Fire in Los Angeles. Hundreds of thousands of residents have had to evacuate their homes, and more than 200 people are still unaccounted for after the fire, according to Butte County Sheriff Kory L. Honea, although many of these people could be in shelters and unable to contact loved loves.
If you're looking to help the victims of the wildfires, there are a number of charities to which you can donate. The Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation is accepting donations and has tweeted: "EMERGENCY UPDATE: @LAFDFoundation needs your help. We’re requesting donations at http://supportLAFD.org to provide hydration backpacks for @LAFD firefighters working tirelessly to contain the fires across Southern California. Any amount of money you can spare makes a difference."
Additionally, The New York Times names two California-specific charities accepting donations: California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Relief Fund, which has offered aid to those affected by wildfires for 15 years, and California Fire Foundation, which is "on the ground distributing financial assistance to people who have lost everything in the fires."
The Entertainment Industry Foundation's Fire Relief Fund is also accepting donations to "support firefighters and first responders who risk their lives to protect the people of California."
You can also support the American Red Cross, which has opened shelters across California, and the Enloe Medical Center, a hospital in Chico which is the site of multiple evacuation centers for the Camp Fire. In addition, Airbnb has launched a program asking people to open their homes to those displaced by the fires for free until November 29.
To help animals affected by the Woolsey and Hill fires, the Humane Society of Ventura County is taking in domestic animals and livestock and is accepting donations.
The Real Housewives of New York City's Bethenny Frankel's B Strong program is also accepting donations. Bethenny tweeted, "BStrong is on the ground to determine precisely where to expend our efforts. In addition to supplies and cash cards, pets are a particular focus on this mission."
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Vanderpump Rules' Lisa Vanderpump, noted that Villa Blanca donated food to Los Angeles' "sheriffs, firefighters and volunteers" and suggested the following way to help: "There are so many ways to help your local disaster relief efforts so we urge other restaurants to contact your police and fire departments to see if you can feed these heroes! For people who want to help individually, donate to your local evacuation centers [and/or] the @americanredcross." Moreover, Vanderpump Dogs collected donations for both humans and animals over the weekend; it has stopped collecting donations at the moment "as many of the centers are full," but noted where people could donate in the Instagram post below.
