Mosque, other houses of worship, burns down in southern California wildfires

A mosque is among the many buildings destroyed in southern California wildfires that continue to rage this week.

The Masjid Al-Taqwa in Altadena is one of thousands of buildings that have been destroyed and is among around 10 houses of worship, including a synagogue and multiple churches, that have burned to the ground in the Eaton fire, one of multiple uncontained wildfires in and around Los Angeles County.

Following the mosque's fire on 7 January, which also affected the homes of nearby congregants, a GoFundMe page was set up by Backer Abu-Jaradeh, a local electrical engineer. 

In his fundraising appeal, he noted that the mosque has been serving the local community for over 20 years and that money raised would go directly to the mosque. So far, over $100,000 has been raised to rebuild the mosque, meeting 20 percent of their goal in two days since the fire.

Southern California is home to one of the largest Muslim communities in the US, with Los Angeles often referred to as Tehrangeles or Little Persia. In addition, nearby Anaheim is known for its Arab community, with a cluster of shops and restaurants called "Little Arabia".

The fast-moving wildfires in the Los Angeles metro area, which started on 7 January amid unusually dry conditions and fast-moving Santa Ana winds, have reportedly caused 10 deaths and destroyed around 10,000 buildings as of 9 January. In addition, tens of thousands of residents have lost power and many more continue to follow mandatory evacuation orders.