TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Buddhist charity Tzu Chi is supporting those in Los Angeles affected by wildfires that have devastated the city since last week, the organization said on Wednesday.
Tzu Chi’s US branch said its volunteers are working at two disaster relief centers in the city. The charity said it has worked with a local Buddhist association to provide food, personal hygiene products, winter clothes, and other goods to victims, and with a local importer of Taiwanese goods to provide soy milk.
Tzu Chi US CEO Tseng Tzu-hui (曾慈慧) said the organization’s volunteers are also providing psychological and spiritual counseling to those affected by the fires.

Tzu Chi said its staff were working at centers opened by local authorities at UCLA Research Park West and the Pasadena City College Community Education Center on Tuesday. The wildfires in LA had killed at least 24 people and destroyed thousands of buildings by that time, per CBS News.
A Tzu Chi spokesperson in Hualien told Taiwan News the US branch is also planning to provide stored-value cards to victims in Los Angeles that can be used to purchase food or other necessities as needed. The spokesperson said the plan is based on an initiative used in Taiwan during past disasters.
