California's Childcare Sector is Already Fragile. Can It Survive the Next Natural Disaster?
This article was first published by the nonprofit newsroom LAist on December 5, 2025 and is republished here with permission.
Eleven months after the January fires, childcare providers — especially those who operated businesses out of their homes — still are struggling to open up their doors.
“There were no state or federal funds provided to support families or providers connected to childcare,” said Cristina Alvarado, executive director of the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles, at arecent legislative hearing. “Sadly, we will experience another disaster, another fire, another loss.”
The California Department of Social Services said as of this summer, 50 of 280 impacted childcare facilities remained closed. They stopped tracking the data in August.
Providers told lawmakers in October that they needed more support to survive in an already fragile childcare industry. Preschools have been closingin L.A. County. There also are not enough childcare providers, and those who are in business are chronically underpaid. A recent study out of Stanford found that most childcare workers struggle to afford basic needs.
What was available for providers?
Unlike during COVID, childcare providers didn’t receive dedicated relief money to recover from the fires. That left them to piece together federal support, state unemployment and private grants.
Providers who took care of children from low-income families and received state subsidies did receive payments from the state for 30 days after the fire. But that didn't get them very far. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office then directed childcare workers to an unemployment phone line.
Providers who looked for help from FEMA and other agencies sometimes found a bureaucratic maze. Felisa Wright, a childcare provider who lost her home and business in the Eaton Fire, spent months trying to get the agency's support. She encountered a series of catch-22s. She was rejected when applying for a small business loan because she didn't make enough money. But to start making money again, she needed to reopen her childcare center.
In a statement, the agency said, “FEMA makes every effort to ensure that everyone eligible for assistance receives the help they need to recover,” and its program for assisting individuals has provided over $150 million to about 35,000 households.
The office of state Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, who co-chairs the select committee on childcare costs, said this fall that the committee will look at identifying legislation to help the childcare industry in times of natural disasters.
Providers say some kind of relief is necessary.
Hear the stories of two providers — Francisca Gunawardena and Felisa Wright — who both lost their homes and what their journeys reveal about recovery overall after the L.A. fires on the latest episode of Imperfect Paradise.
