British comedian Gina Yashere took to social media and shared her heartache (Image: Instagram Gina Yashere)
Gina Yashere, who left Britain 17 years ago for the US, tearfully shared an update on as she lamented her “beautiful property” was gone.
California is grappling with ferocious wildfires that are tearing across multiple locales, displacing thousands who’ve been compelled to seek refuge.
Whole neighbourhoods have been destroyed and 10 people have been confirmed to have died, with officials warning the true toll won’t be clear until it’s safe for investigators to go into the areas.
The British comedian, 50, previously had a recurring slot on the ’s Lenny Henry Show between 2004 and 2005, sold out theatres and was a regular guest on the TV panel show Mock the Week.
She continues to have a thriving career in the US as the internationally acclaimed comedian recently joined the all-new original series of Star Trek as a recurring guest.
Gina and her partner Nina have since evacuated and have sought refuge at another property.
Taking to the picture-sharing site on Thursday (January 9), she uploaded a video as she explained her situation. The post was captioned: “Despite this f*****g devastating loss, I’m glad all our friends and neighbours are safe.
We put our hearts & souls into our home, & built many beautiful memories there & we are heartbroken, but at the same time we feel lucky. Love you all.”
In the tearful clip, Gina began: “I’ve been crying. My house is gone. It burnt down last night. I was preparing for the worse. I’m in a text group with my beautiful neighbours in Altadena and we were seeing videos coming in from my neighbours cameras showing the fire encroaching.
“Me and about seven or eight of our neighbours lost our houses last night. Me and Nina lost everything we owned except for what is in our suitcases that we brought to Canada for Star Trek.
“We lost all of those memories. It’s been a sad time but also I feel blessed at the end of the day.”
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Gina explained that she and her family were safe and they are currently residing in Costa Rica.
“I have somewhere else to stay. I’ve got this beautiful property in Costa Rica that we literally just furnished yesterday,” the comic remarked.
“Then our house burnt down,” she lamented. “The universe is sending us a message. Stay where you are. You don’t need to be in America right now.”
Gina continued: “I feel sad. We lost our beautiful home and all of the memories created there.”
She added, “It’s not even about the house. I lost my memorabilia. My flyers and posters from my very first shows back in ’95 to the present day. Not so much the house.
“It’s all the other stuff that can’t be replaced. But we’re safe. Me, Nina, the pups. We can shelter elsewhere. I’ll be in Canada filming Star Trek so we will have somewhere to live.
“Our house is ashes and I think it’s indicative of what’s happening in America.
“All my friends from London called – we did a big WhatsApp call – and I was overwhelmed by the love. I’m gratful for you guys and I appreciate you guys. Here’s to a new chapter.”
Gina concluded: “We are going to have start again from scratch. Everything we owned was in that house.”