In San Bernardino mountains, residents hit by devastating mudslide fear more to come
A man walks in front of a home after it was completely destroyed from a mudslide in San Bernardino, Calif., on April 8. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
By Kym Smith
This story was originally published April 8, 2017.
When three residents of a mobile home park in San Bernardino, Calif., came together to share their stories in June, they knew that they were confronting the heart of a national tragedy.
When California’s governor declared a state of emergency for San Bernardino County on April 2, 2017, he was taking action. The reason is simple: As a result of the fire, hundreds of people still are living in or around the burned-out area, and more than 15,000 families have been displaced from their homes.
“It’s a nightmare,” said Maria del Carmen Alonzo, a 42-year-old single mother in San Bernardino. She’s lived in the same mobile home park for three years, and since her family left this spring, she’s seen three other members of her family, as well as her grandchildren, displaced from their homes. “I’ve been calling people’s families, and every one of them is having the same issue. I thought it was over, but it hasn’t ended — and I don’t know if it will ever end.”
Alonzo’s family is among the nearly 200,000 people displaced from their homes by the April 2 wildfires in San Bernardino County. (Kym Smith/The Times)
After Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency, he issued an executive order on the morning of April 8, directing the California National Guard to assist in providing assistance and rebuilding the community.
“This has been an act of God,” he told reporters Thursday. “This kind of