Hollywood actress Dalyce Curry, 95, has died in the recent devastating wildfires that swept through Los Angeles.
The tragic news was confirmed on Sunday, 12th January, by the coroner’s office. Curry’s remains were found in the wreckage of her home in Altadena, which was destroyed by the Eaton Fire.
Curry, affectionately known as “Momma D” to her family, enjoyed a successful career in Hollywood, appearing in classic films such as “The Blues Brothers,” “The Ten Commandments,” and “Lady Sings the Blues.”
The fire tragically erupted on Tuesday, 7th January. Curry’s granddaughter, Kelley, had dropped her off at home late that night after a series of hospital appointments. Unfortunately, the following morning, Kelley received a text message informing her that the power had been cut off at her grandmother’s house.
Concerned, Kelley rushed to Altadena, only to be met with devastating news. An officer informed her, “I’m sorry your grandmother’s property is gone. It totally burned down.”
Devastated, Kelley was directed to the Pasadena Civic Center, where residents displaced by the fire had been sent. On Friday, 10th January, she was finally able to visit the site of her grandmother’s home.
“It was total devastation,” Kelley recalled. “Everything was gone except her blue Cadillac.”
Throughout the agonizing search for her grandmother, Kelley clung to hope. “Honestly, we don’t feel very hopeful that she’s still here with us,” she told Eyewitness News on Sunday, while the search was still underway.
Even before the tragic news of her grandmother’s passing, Kelley had expressed concerns about the lack of effective emergency response.
“They have to do better with the emergency system,” she told KABC. “There’s a that was a very elderly kind of community. There’s a lot of retirees there, and we can’t just rely on the cellphone, because elderly people don’t really do cellphones. They don’t. That’s not the only way we should notify people when there’s evacuation orders.”
She further questioned, “Why did it not happen earlier? Why was I allowed to have access to her home at midnight and not have any danger warnings? No highway signs up the way saying, ‘This is an evacuation zone.'”
Curry’s granddaughters paid tribute to the beloved actress, remembering her as a vibrant and passionate woman who loved life and her community. “Our souls are aching, our hearts are broken,” Kelley said. “She loved Altadena. There was no one who loved that city more than my grandmother. She said she had not yet begun to live, so I knew she would just be here beyond 100. She still wanted to date, she wanted to find a husband.”
