Who is Eaton Fire Residents United?

EFRU is a coalition of residents directly affected by the Eaton Fire, which ignited on January 7th, 2025. We are concerned about the Eaton Fire’s adverse public health impacts on the community. We are an open-membership group for anyone who would like to help ensure a safe return to Altadena, Pasadena, and Sierra Madre communities.

Why does Eaton Fire Residents United want to collect home hygienic testing reports from the community?

EFRU is inviting residents directly affected by the Eaton Fire to voluntarily share home hygienic testing reports so that we can compile the information into a neighborhood map that will be accessible to the community and public. The map(s) will show the levels of contaminants present, such as ash, soot, smoke, lead, and asbestos, as collected by professional testing organizations. We hope to use this information to advocate for the safe remediation of our properties and community spaces, and the long-term safe return to our community. This is a ground-up citizen science project where we leverage the information in our community to increase knowledge about potential contaminants in the community, which may help guide government policy. Knowledge is POWER. PLEASE CONSIDER JOINING US to make transparent, important information about our community. TOGETHER we are DENA STRONG.

How will Eaton Fire Residents United keep my home report safe?

A small group of individuals from the data and mapping EFRU sub-committee will have access to the reports shared by residents. This sub-group is comprised of JPL scientists, USC professors, and professional data scientists trained in the safe handling of data. EFRU will make every effort to ensure no individual home can be identified on the map. Safe handling includes:

• Redacting your personal information from the report upon receipt

• Deleting information from the report not needed for mapping purposes (e.g., photos) 

• “Pinning” your home’s contaminant levels to a point within your evacuation zone and no closer than the nearest cross street on the map

• Combining relevant data into one type of map (e.g., lead levels) so that the story remains on the whole community and not any one home

How can I participate?

If you would like to participate in this project, please volunteer to share your testing results with EFRU by completing the questions below. You will be asked for basic contact information and context for the test results. Lastly, you will be asked to upload the home testing results and “submit” for participation. There are no costs or compensation for participation. There are no expected risks or direct personal benefits for participation. If needed, a member of our data team is available to answer any questions you may have. We can also follow up with you about further opportunities to get involved to keep our community safe.

Questions? Contact us here.