Lessons of survival and resilience from the Eaton fire in California

WBUR

Published August 19, 2026 at 9:55 AM MDT

The sun sets over damage from the Eaton Fire, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in Altadena, California. (Nic Coury/AP)

When Nikki High had to evacuate her home during the Eaton fire in January of 2025, she was unsure if it would be standing when she returned. Her home survived, as did Octavia’s Bookshelf, the local bookstore she owns in Pasadena, California, Octavia’s Bookshelf.

As the fire raged on, High turned the bookstore into a mutual aid hub for her local community.

Here & Now‘s Indira Lakshmanan speaks with High about the lessons she learned from that time about community and resilience in the face of devastation.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.