Headed back to work

Long Beach exterminator Steven Griffith, 42, was waiting at Catalina Express pier in downtown Long Beach hoping to help out evacuees. A former resident of Catalina, he said he took the day off to offer temporary lodging to evacuees. "I’ve got a roof over my head, I'm grateful for that. I’m thinking two or three people, if they need help, could spend the night."

One of the few people heading toward Catalina was Tommy Duong, 36, who was trying to get to his job at Mr. Ming’s, a Chinese restaurant, which he said was one of the few businesses open on the island. "A lot of businesses are closing down, except for us," he said his colleagues had told him. "The restaurant is located near a popular hotel and many people need to eat."

Duong lives part-time near Alhambra in the San Gabriel Valley. He and other workers sometimes stay at a house in Avalon with their boss, which his colleagues have told him is "full of smoke." "It’s very terrible, it’s very bad, a lot of businesses are closing down, except us. The restaurant is located near a popular hotel, and many people need to eat," he said.

"It’s actually a very nice place – Avalon – it’s all ashes," Duong said.

-Susannah Rosenblatt