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When disaster strikes, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) usually steps in to lease temporary housing units through its Direct Lease program. But for survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires, that support hasn’t come through, The Los Angeles Times reported.
Despite more than 13,000 homes destroyed in the January Los Angeles wildfires, and many residents still trying to pick up the pieces, the program was never activated in Los Angeles.
FEMA’s Direct Lease program is designed to help when rental options are scarce. It allows the agency to cover rent and utilities for eligible disaster survivors by placing them in available single-family homes, apartments or townhouses.
According to a FEMA spokesperson, housing data doesn’t justify the need for it.
“The number of applicants eligible for and requesting continued FEMA rental assistance remained comparatively low, suggesting that, on a broad scale, many eligible survivors were able to find housing solutions within the available rental market,” the spokesperson told the LA Times.
In other words, FEMA believes the local rental market is healthy enough to meet demand, as federal and state emergency officials point to more than 5,600 rental units in the area that fall within FEMA’s reimbursement limits. But local advocates say that paints an incomplete picture.
Heavenly Hughes | My Tribe Rise co-founder
Heavenly Hughes, co-founder of My Tribe Rise, an Altadena-based nonprofit, believes the need on the ground is far greater than federal data suggests.
“If these agencies are set up to show compassion and care, to have these people have some type of normalcy, the first part would be helping people find housing,” Hughes told the LA Times.
She added that local agencies are overwhelmed trying to meet the demand, and for some survivors, the situation has become dire.
Tamara Johnson, 62, lost her home in the Altadena wildfires and says she couldn’t find housing that would accept FEMA assistance. After living in her van, which she later totaled, she’s now staying in a rental car.
“I’m going through all this,” Johnson told the LA Times. “And I just came through a disaster.”
Instead of activating Direct Lease, FEMA continues encouraging eligible residents to apply for Continued Temporary Housing Assistance (CTHA), which can cover rent and utilities for up to 18 months beyond the initial two-month grant period — so long as recipients remain eligible.
