By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-13 17:17:56 | Updated at 2025-01-17 07:12:32
3 days ago
A mom feels “blessed” her family is still alive after watching her house burn down on a stranger’s TikTok video while on vacation.
Laura Camuglia-Byrnes, 56, was away for a few days at Joshua Tree National Park, California, with her cat and dog, when the wildfires started.
Two days into her trip she received a message from her two daughters to say flames at Eaton Canyon from their house and were evacuating their home.
Laura knew her neighborhood would be next – and took to TikTok to track the fire.
She was horrified when she discovered a stranger’s video which showed her home burning.
Former business owner Laura says her entire town has burned down and she has lost everything.
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Despite the loss, Laura said it is a “miracle” and she is “blessed” that her friends and family are still alive.
Laura, a former business owner, said: “I saw a video of my house burning down on TikTok, that was wild.
“I am mentally preparing myself for what is going to be there when I get back, for some reason it is hard for me to care about my house when I know my entire town is gone.
“I can’t help but feel blessed and lucky that I was alive.
“I can’t help but feel blessed that I was able to leave.”
Laura was planning on moving to Europe in February so she planned a last-minute trip to Joshua Tree National Park with her dog and cat to get them used to traveling, on January 5, 2024.
The night before she was due to arrive back in Altadena she saw the fires in Pacific Palisades.
She said: “I then saw home a fire had started in Eaton Canyon which is three miles from my neighborhood.
“The moment I saw that message, I checked my phone and saw how my daughters were at home saying they could see the flames from the second floor and they were leaving.
“They grabbed three items – a camera bag, passports and my dead dog’s ashes and they left.
“Thank God they did, as the minute the fire broke out in Eaton Canyon, I knew the fire was going to go house to house.”
Laura had lived in her four-bedroom home, which she shared with her two daughters for 13 years.
She has lost everything, including her life’s work as a photographer but said she feels “blessed” that her family and friends are safe.
She said: “Even though I was planning on moving out, I was looking forward to the next family moving into that house.
“My whole town has burnt down, there is nothing left.
“I lost my entire body of work, and my warehouse burnt down, but ultimately I am alive, my two kids are alive and my ex-husband is alive.
“I didn’t lose anything of importance, I feel like it was a miracle that I left when I did.
“There is so much that has been lost but we are all alive – that is the most important thing.”
