As deadly wildfires tragically consume some of California’s metropolitan areas, causing tens of thousands to evacuate and destroying thousands of structures, Samaritan’s Purse is prayerfully standing by to offer help in Jesus’ Name. Once local officials give the word that it is safe to enter the affected areas, we will mobilize teams of volunteers to aid hurting homeowners.
“We just have to wait til the fires are contained and are out before we can do anything,” said Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse. “As soon as they give us the all clear, we’ll go in.”
Even when the blazes are contained, Graham explained that local officials must first inspect the fire-ravaged areas block-by-block in search of additional casualties before relief workers are allowed in. Sometimes it can take up to take up to a couple of weeks for this arduous task to be completed.
When the green light is given, Samaritan’s Purse will deploy trucks, equipment, and supplies from our West Coast Ministry Center in Fullerton to the devastated areas to support the work of our U.S. Disaster Relief volunteers.
“The first thing that we’ll do is we’ll offer homeowners assistance if they want it,” Graham said. “We’ll help sift through the ashes. That takes a team of people going through one part of the house sifting through every square inch of ashes that are on the ground.
“We’ve found coin collections, picture albums that have somehow survived, rings, a lot of jewelry. Being able to give back to a homeowner even a little thing like a ring that’s survived means so much to them.”
Showing Victims God Hasn’t Forgotten Them
Billy Graham Rapid Response Team chaplains will also play a critical role in the response with 20 trained volunteers already positioned in Southern California.
“People need to tell their story,’ Graham said. “This is the most traumatic event of their life—how they escaped from the flames and got out of there. Chaplains will just listen and pray with them and encourage them, letting them know that God hasn’t turned His back on them, that God loves and cares for them. It’s a very important ministry that helps them emotionally and spiritually.”
Please pray for the California wildfire victims who have lost everything. Ask God “to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness” (Isaiah 61:3) in the wake of this horrendous tragedy.
“A lot of people are asking, ‘Why?’” Graham said. “That’s a hard question to answer but we want to reassure them of God’s love.”
