AP PHOTOS: Parents and kids navigate talks of loss and tragedy as they return home after LA fires

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, 11, right, adjusts his mask as he and his mother, Alyson Granaderos, stand next to what remains of their in-law suite during Ceiba’s first visit to their home since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Alyson Granaderos and her children, Ceiba Phillips, right, and Quoia hug one another as the children visit their home for the first time since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuee Alyson Granaderos, left, sobs while trying to comfort her son, Ceiba Phillips, 11, as he visits their home for the first time since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuee Ceiba Phillips, 11, pauses in the doorway for a moment as he visits his home for the first time since the fire in Altadena, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. Although his family’s in-law suite was gutted, the Phillips’ home was one of the few in their neighborhood that survived the fire. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuee Craig Phillips visits his home with his two children, Ceiba, left, and Quoia, in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. Although the family’s in-law suite was gutted, the Phillips’ home was one of the few in their neighborhood that survived the fire. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuee Ceiba Phillips, 11, is overwhelmed with emotion as he visits his best friend’s home, which was devastated by the fire, across the street from his own in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Ceiba Phillips, an 11-year-old Eaton Fire evacuee, looks at a safety sign at his best friend’s home, which was gutted by the fire, during his first visit to his home and neighborhood since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Ceiba Phillips, an 11-year-old Eaton Fire evacuee, walks out of his room as he visits his home for the first time since the fire, which destroyed his family’s in-law suite, in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, right, and his father, Craig, hug Ceiba’s best friend, Julian Trobiani, whose home was devastated by the fire, on Ceiba’s first visit to his home since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Ceiba Phillips, an 11-year-old Eaton Fire evacuee, sits in his family’s car after visiting his home for the first time since the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Caution tape blocks the charred entrance of Ceiba Phillips’ school devastated by the Eaton Fire in Altadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, 11, left, feels the wind on his face as he chats with his mother, Alyson Granaderos, on their way to pick up his sister, Quoia, in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, from left, Russell Graham, Ceiba’s sister, Quoia, and Russell’s brother, Justin, draw on a blackboard at an ice cream shop in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, right, and his sister, Quoia, left, share a light moment with Justin Graham, center, and his brother, Russell, outside an ice cream shop in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Ceiba Phillips, an 11-year-old Eaton Fire evacuee, looks at a photo on his mother’s phone showing the fire destroying his family’s in-law suite in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, 11, plays hide-and-seek with his 4-year-old sister, Quoia, at a park in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, 11, right, and his 4-year-old sister, Quoia, play at a park in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuee Alyson Granaderos, right, walks with her son, Ceiba Phillips, 11, after picking him up from school in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Eaton Fire evacuees Ceiba Phillips, 11, left, plays with his 4-year-old sister, Quoia, at a park in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Ceiba Phillips, an 11-year-old Eaton Fire evacuee, visits his school gutted by the fire in Altadena, Calif., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

LOS ANGELES (AP) —

When 11-year-old Ceiba Phillips returned to his Southern California neighborhood a month after the devastating Eaton fire, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

The fire that tore through the community of Altadena on Jan. 7 left only a few houses standing among the rubble, leaving families dealing with the trauma and painful aftermath of one of the most destructive fires in California history.

Kids are navigating the grief of losing everything that was familiar, while their parents are learning how to help them cope. Experts say reestablishing routine as quickly as possible after disaster is key to helping kids cope.