“Over 100,000 People Displaced”: Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman Saddened by Unprecedented Fires in LA

It’s been 11 days since the LA Wildfires started ravaging the neighborhood of Los Angeles and as things stand, the fires are not showing any signs of slowing down. So far, 27 have reportedly been killed by the fires with more than 100,000 citizens displaced. One among them is former New England Patriots WR, Julian Edelman, who expressed his deep sorrow about the devastation caused by wildfires in his latest podcast episode with Rob Gronkowski.

Julian and Rob’s podcast, “Dudes on Dudes” is normally shot at Julian Edelman’s house, called The Nut House, in Brentwood, LA. Unfortunately for the former NFL WR, the wildfires eventually got near Brentwood, making it an evacuation zone.

While Edelman, his family, and the entire team of “Dudes on Dudes” safely evacuated, Julian in the latest episode of the podcast couldn’t stop himself from noting the devastation caused by the fires so far.

“Over 100,000 people have been displaced, lives have been lost and thousands of homes/structures have been destroyed because of this crazy fire,” noted the three-time Super Bowl winner.

Co-host Rob also chimed in by expressing his condolences to the victims of the tragic incident. “Our thoughts are with everyone across the region affected by these unprecedented wildfires. This is a tragedy,” the former NFL TE said.

Before delving into the agenda of the episode, the duo ensured that they let their viewers know of all the relief-providing websites, where they can donate. Rob’s urge to his followers was simple–donate to the best of your capabilities. Even if it’s just $5, please donate, urged the former Patriots TE.

“If you would like to help those impacted by the fires, we have a couple of resources right here that you can donate to. The first one is the California Fire Foundation [cafirefoundation.org], then we got the Los Angeles Foodbank [lafoodbank.org] and you know, the Red Cross organization [redcross.org]. Please donate to one of those three. $5, $10, $15, $100, anything depending on how rich you are. Anything will help and it all adds up in the end.”

Once the hygiene information was relayed, Julian began reminiscing his first-hand experience of the fires. Contrary to the media terming the visuals from LA fires as apocalyptic, Julian Edelman argued that “it’s that and more.”

The former NFL TE revealed how he felt unsafe the entire time as he saw the fires getting one canyon closer with every passing day. Edelman termed the visuals around him as a “war zone” and noted that he felt like he was “Kevin McAllister” from Home Alone with the way he was fortifying his house with sprinklers.

Edelman also shared the challenges that come with sudden evacuation notices due to the amount of valuables one may have to carry along with them to the safe zone. Despite getting the evacuation notice a couple of days prior, Julian noted that he and his family were the last to evacuate from the street owing to the time they spent in getting their “stuff ready” for travel.

All said it’s heartening to know that Julian Edelman and his loved ones are safe. Seeing your home burn down with no place in your vicinity to be safe is truly a traumatic experience. As Rob said, the least one can do is support the rescue and relief providers in these tough times. So do follow the links above and do your bit. Every penny counts!