In fact, Altadena houses the most foster care children in one area in the entire county.
"Children in foster care face significant trauma throughout their lives," said Taylor Dudley, the Executive Director at the UCLA Pritzker Center for Strengthening Children and Families. "This fire compounded that trauma."
Researchers at the UCLA Pritzker Center are studying the impact that the Eaton Fire had on the lives and education of children in the foster care system.
"In Altadena, we have the most foster family agencies and group homes in a concentrated area," said L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger. "You can imagine what the impact was and having school go offline ... the kids have no place to go."
Researchers say of the 225 foster children in the Eaton Fire zone, 76% were school-aged and nearly half of them are receiving permanent placement or extended foster care services.
Most of the group homes and facilities were damaged or destroyed in the fire, many of which were in west Altadena, which had little time to evacuate and suffered significant losses. The children lost not only their housing, but also their schools.
Researchers also say that three months after the fire, one in six children had to relocate outside of the Altadena area, and that overall, they moved an average of 16 miles away.
"We hope that going forward, the school district, [Department of Children and Family Services] and other agencies involved will double down and support kids in foster care so they can achieve their potential and be successful in school and beyond," said Dudley.