Southern California wildfires shattered Leonardo and Giorgi Antinori’s lives after claiming their home and robbing them of their late firstborn child’s ashes.
Now, without insurance, the couple is looking to rebuild with help from friends, FEMA and the generosity of donors.
“It has been like a surreal nightmare. The whole thing hasn’t even really sunk in yet, and I don’t think it will for a very long time,” Giorgi told “Fox & Friends First” on Wednesday.
“At this moment, we’re just taking every day, one day at a time, and we are just very grateful for all our friends and family that have come to our rescue,” Leonardo added.
The couple fled their blue wooden bungalow home with their two-year-old daughter as the wind-fueled wildfires spread, later consuming the property and those nearby.
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When they returned, the home and its contents were gone. Among their possessions lost in the flames – perhaps the most valuable – was the ashes of their firstborn daughter Vita, who died 15 years ago.
“Every memory, every piece of physical evidence of her life, is just gone. And that hurts. I feel numb right now because I feel like I’ve cried all of my emotions,” Giorgi told CNN.
Some friends set up a GoFundMe for the Antinori family to help mitigate the costs of putting their lives back together after the tragedy. As of Wednesday morning, donations had neared $80,000.
“We’ve actually just been so blown away by everybody’s support after hearing our story because we didn’t have insurance anymore because we couldn’t afford it anymore,” Giorgi said.
But support extends beyond donors. The couple learned shortly before the segment that they were eligible for full FEMA financial support, which helps with housing and other personal needs after a disaster.
“It feels like a miracle from God, actually,” Giorgi said. “But, not to be crass and talk too much about money, but to lose a $400,000 house, which seems expensive maybe to many people who don’t live here. But in California, that’s I mean, that’s working class, so to have a total loss like that is absolutely devastating to us.”
Now Giorgi and Leonardo are focused on remaining strong for their daughter.
“My whole world is spinning, and she’s seen me cry, and she’s seen me break down, but at the same time, it’s like she still needs my attention, and she still needs structure. How do you do that when your whole life is in an ash pile and there is no more structure and there is no more normal and you have to start all over again? That’s been really tough,” Giorgi continued.
“I’ve just been taking it minute by minute and reaching out to friends and praying and just trying to give her as much attention as I can while also dealing with like FEMA paperwork and all kinds of things.”
