Holiday Care Packages Stuck in Napa Valley Self Storage Units After August Quake

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake that heavily damaged Napa Self Storage in Napa, Calif., in August, is still inflicting hardships for tenants of the facility, including Operation: With Love from Home, a local organization that normally sends about 1,000 care packages to U.S. troops overseas during the Christmas season. The nonprofit has hundreds of personal-care items trapped in two units donated by the self-storage facility, according to the source. The group has managed to assemble only 500 boxes, about half of its annual goal, because it cannot gain access to the items, program coordinator Liz Alessio told the source.

Building 900, a two-story structure containing 230 storage units, was red-tagged by city officials due to structural instability, prohibiting entry. While the storage business has been working to find a solution that would enable tenants to salvage their stored goods, Operation: With LOVE from HOME won’t be able to recover its items before packages need to be mailed in early December. “We really were counting on these items for this effort,” Alessio said.

The nonprofit is hopeful that donations from the community will help to make up the shortfall. It’s accepting donations of toiletries and other items through the end of November. The care packages will be shipped to U.S. troops stationed in the Middle East.

Miranda Evans, a spokesperson for RMB Management Inc., a property-management company that co-owns the storage facility, said a bracing-and-shoring plan that could enable specialized crews to enter the building and recover tenant property is expected to be submitted to the city by Dec. 8. The project would cost about $80,000, according to the source.

Tenants have complained about a lack of communication from the storage operator, and frustrations have mounted since other businesses in the region seem to be further along in their recovery and rebuilding efforts, according to news sources. Napa officials have agreed to get involved with the situation and will hold a briefing for tenants on Dec. 2, according to ABC7 News.