EARTHQUAKE: THE LONG ROAD BACK : Families Transferred as Shelters in Simi, Fillmore Consolidate Service

For dozens of displaced Ventura County residents, Tuesday was moving day as American Red Cross shelters consolidated services, closing sparsely populated shelters in Simi Valley and Fillmore and sending earthquake victims to other sites in those cities.

Families that spent Monday evening at Royal High in Simi Valley to escape the cold and rain were moved Tuesday to Hillside Junior High to make way for returning students.

In Fillmore, the shelter at Veteran’s Memorial Building was closed and its 22 occupants transferred to the shelter at Fillmore Middle School.

“The shelters are being joined to better use the available resources,” said Brian Bolton, director of the county chapter of the Red Cross.

At both shelters Tuesday, people stacked blankets, folded up cots and packed clothes and other belongings into plastic garbage bags and cardboard boxes.

“Just as long as we have a roof over our heads, I think it’s OK,” said Leticia Gonzalez, who has been at the Simi Valley shelter with her four sons since last week’s earthquake heavily damaged the family’s home.

Red Cross officials said 168 people stayed at the Fillmore shelter Tuesday night, compared to Monday when 134 residents--including 15 people who moved from the Veteran’s Memorial shelter--were given emergency housing.

In Simi Valley, 127 people sought Red Cross shelter Monday, and officials late Tuesday said they were anticipating a similar number.

And 20 people spent Tuesday night at the Red Cross shelter at the Piru School on Center Street, compared to 110 on Monday, when the rainstorm and a power outage drove many people indoors from makeshift campsites. All three shelters will remain open indefinitely, officials said.

Authorities said they were concerned about residents who have been sleeping outside or in their cars, because nighttime temperatures have been dipping into the 30s and 40s in both cities.

John Hernandez, an Oxnard resident and Red Cross volunteer for three years, said he saw several parked cars Monday night filled with homeless earthquake victims near Piru and Fillmore.

“We drove over last night to Piru and saw five different vans with candles inside and stopped and told them that this was dangerous,” he said. When Hernandez suggested they come with him to the shelter they declined. “They said, no we’ll just stay right here. They’re afraid. Afraid of the building falling down.”

In Simi Valley, at mobile home parks hard hit by the quake some people are remaining at the parks even though the gas was still off, leaving all of the coaches without heat.

Connie Lial and four members of her family have been spending most nights in their cars parked outside of their mobile home at Simi Country Estates mobile home park while they wait to see if they will get federal aid to repair their heavily damaged coach.

Monday night’s rain and cold temperatures led the family to seek shelter at a relative’s house in Oxnard.

But the 60-year-old Lial said the commute from Oxnard is too far for the family to drive every day.

Lial’s neighbor, Dave Marwick, and his mother spent Monday night in Marwick’s mother’s unheated coach. But they didn’t even try to sleep. Instead, they stayed up until 5 a.m. packing crystal, electronic equipment and other valuables to put in storage until the mobile home is repaired.

“It feels like you’re camping,” said Ron Reedy, a friend who had helped the Marwicks with the packing.

Fillmore native Linda Acosta, who lost her home in last week’s quake and has been living at the Fillmore shelter, said she wants to get her two daughters out of the shelter and into a permanent residence.

“I need to get my kids someplace. My daughter broke down (and cried) the other night,” she said. “There’s no privacy.”

Acosta said she was hoping to leave the shelter as soon as possible and move into an apartment Red Cross volunteers had recommended.

Now that the immediate emergency needs of the earthquake victims has been met, Red Cross workers are focusing their efforts on helping displaced residents find permanent housing at the county’s two Red Cross service centers, Bolton said.

Mike Goth, disaster relief supervisor for the local Red Cross chapter, said about 250 families and individuals have sought assistance at the service centers to find housing and other help.

“We encourage people to go to service centers if they have needs,” Goth said.

To get assistance in finding permanent housing, earthquake victims should go to one of two Red Cross service centers. Care workers at the service centers will help determine the needs of displaced individuals and issue vouchers for housing and food.

The Fillmore Red Cross center is located at the Fillmore Senior Center, 533 Santa Clara Ave. The Simi Valley center is at Sycamore Park Community Center, 1692 Sycamore Drive.