(Reuters) – The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce announced on Wednesday the creation of a relief fund to support and rebuild small businesses affected by the wildfires that have devastated parts of Los Angeles over the past week.
The Chamber will provide grants ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 as direct support along with disaster recovery webinars and business advice to guide through the rebuilding phase.
The monstrous fires have killed at least 25 people, damaged or destroyed nearly 12,000 structures, and have already consumed an area the size of Washington, DC.
About 6.5 million people remained under critical fire threat as winds of 20 to 40 miles (32 to 64 kilometers) per hour with gusts up to 70 mph were forecast and humidity dipped into the single digits during the day. said the National Weather Service. On Wednesday.
The new fund received an initial donation of $500,000 from Bank of America and additional contributions of $250,000 from Chevron (NYSE:) and home security company Ring.
Bank of America last week pledged $1 million to the American Red Cross to help with recovery efforts, $500,000 to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, plus half a million dollars to the Los Angeles Chamber.
Meanwhile, Canadian lender Royal Bank of Canada and City National Bank of Los Angeles announced a combined $3 million donation to support victims of the devastating wildfires in Southern California.
Private forecaster AccuWeather estimates total damage and economic losses between $250 billion and $275 billion, which would make the Los Angeles fires the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history, surpassing Hurricane Katrina in 2005. .
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