Seniors Rally for Safety Improvements at Altadena Apartment Complex, Recount Harrowing Eaton Fire Evacuation

Elderly residents of the Mirador Apartments in West Altadena held a rally Tuesday to voice concerns about their evacuation experience during the recent Eaton Fire, claiming they were left without proper assistance.

Several seniors at the gathering alleged they were forced to navigate the evacuation without functioning elevators or accessibility features when the building lost power during the fire, reportedly leaving them trapped on upper floors in complete darkness engulfed in thick smoke.

Niobe Recasens, 87, a Mirador resident, described her evacuation attempt during the rally.

“I fell down the stairs and hit between my shoulder blades and the pain was so severe. I thought I broke my spine,” Recasens said. “People were running by and screaming and I kept saying, ‘Don’t leave me, don’t leave me!'”

According to residents, some called emergency services as the fire approached but were told that West Altadena wasn’t in a mandatory evacuation zone and would have to wait for assistance.

Residents also expressed frustration with the building’s management company, ConAm, which they said declared the building safe for occupancy two weeks after the fire despite concerns about toxic ash in the building. According to the residents, the Mirador is adjacent to structures that completely burned in the fire.

ConAm told media the company was not commenting, but did issue a statement reported by KABC Eyewitness News.

‘Mirador is an independent living community and should not be confused with assisted living or skilled nursing facilities…,” the statement attributed to ConAm said. “Our management followed all city and county protocols — both around the mandatory evacuations the morning of January 8 and in ensuring the remediation necessary to confirm Mirador units and common areas were safe and habitable.'”

At this week’s press conference, resident Julie Esnard, 67, claimed she asked management about cleaning the apartments.

“I asked when they were going to clean the apartments, and they said, ‘we’re not, you have to clean it,'” Esnard said. “I said, ‘We’re old, how do you expect us to clean all of this soot and ash and smoke?’, and they responded, ‘Well, you can leave.'”

Several attendees at the rally said they received eviction notices the same day as the event. These residents expressed concerns about potential homelessness if forced to leave what they described as one of the few affordable senior housing options in Altadena.

Katie Clark, identified as being from the all-volunteer Altadena Tenants Union, spoke at the gathering about broader concerns.

“Across Altadena, story after story after story, like the Mirador have been happening,” Clark said. “People have been abandoned. They have been left behind, left to their own devices and told, ‘good luck, figure it out.'”

Jose Madera, identified as Director of the Pasadena Community Job Center, also addressed the crowd.

“What type of city are we if we can’t take care of our most vulnerable community, our elders?” Madera said. “That’s why we’re here, and we’ll continue to be here. We know that this is going to take a long time to recover from this fire, but we need solidarity and love, and that’s what we’re seeing here today.”

During the rally, residents presented several demands they said were previously shared with ConAm and Affirmed Housing without direct response. These demands included: functional backup power sources for emergency evacuations; a clear evacuation plan with regular drills; immediate remediation of smoke, soot and ash from apartments and common areas with post-remediation testing; return of rent prorated from January 7th (the night of the evacuation) until proof of habitability; reliable on-site staffing with an end to alleged bullying and threats and a standardized complaint reporting process and evaluation process for residents to give feedback; and 24-hour security personnel on site.

Esnard, Recasens and other Mirador residents have formed the El Mirador Alliance to advocate for improvements to their living conditions, according to statements made at the rally.