The United States Postal Service has a monumental task at hand. A football field-size area of mail piled a few feet high (according to USPS employees) was waiting to be delivered to Malibu on Monday. Some of that mail contains important items from mail order prescriptions to paychecks and other necessities. Getting it into the hands of Malibu area residents has been difficult and chaotic and information on daily changes in scheduled delivery areas has been hard to disseminate to residents—many of whom are still without power since the Woolsey Fire whipped through Malibu Nov. 9.
The central distribution center for mail pick-up in Malibu is at the old Colony Station Post Office located at 23648 Pacific Coast Highway, which is next the Malibu Urgent Care. There will be no mail service on Thursday, Thanksgiving Day. Operations will resume on Friday, Nov. 23, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for mail pick-up. Saturday hours are 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Customers must bring a valid photo ID in order to obtain their mail.
Earlier last week, Malibu residents were forced to drive an hour away to South Central Los Angeles in order to retrieve mail. Some who did reported that after nearly a half-hour wait they only received partial mail deliveries. One resident told The Malibu Times he made the drive into Los Angeles because he was expecting a delivery of prescription medication that was not among the meager amount of mail he received, as he expected an entire week’s worth.
On Monday, Nov. 19, some residents were able to retrieve mail at the old Colony Station while other residents were told mail would finally be delivered to their addresses. Others were not so lucky. Corral Canyon resident Cheryl Reynolds drove an hour into Malibu from Fillmore, where she has been staying with relatives for more than a week. She was handed only a small bundle of mail after 10 days of being shut off from her canyon, which as of Monday still had no access.
“We haven’t had any word on when we can get back in,” Reynolds was told by a neighbor that her house survived. She said she’s been through 11 fires in her 38 years in Malibu. She lost her home in the 2007 fire.
“Somebody needs to get this organized so that the people know what’s going on,” she said. Reynolds said her neighborhood has been sharing news through social media and was frustrated that county officials have been mostly radio silent.
Across the street at the local assistance center set up at the old courthouse next to the Malibu Library, assistance for fire victims was available. Helpful people from FEMA to mental health services answered questions and assisted those who have lost their homes.
USPS worker Phillip Chan was helping those with mail issues, including change of address forms. He encouraged those expecting urgent items such as insurance or FEMA checks or medications to hold off on the change of address. Chan said based on past experience it may add a one- to two-week delay in getting mail to the new location.
“It’s a matter of getting to everything,” Chan explained. “Everything will be in tubs. As everything gets cleared up, they will get to as many parcels as they can to be available.”
For those who have lost passports, USPS is assisting and waiving the Department of State research fee for not surrendering an old passport when applying to renew. A new passport form must be filled out and the regular fee required, however; the replacement would be a new passport valid for 10 years from the new date issued.
Since there is currently no USPS retail service available in Malibu, customers can buy products and services nearby at the Pacific Palisades Post Office at 15243 La Cruz Street or the Santa Monica Post Office at 1653 7th Street.
For updated local USPS news, call 323.586.1460.
The postal service said it thanked customers for their patience and understanding during the wildfire disruption. Workers at the old Colony station said they could sense the frustration of locals trying to pick up mail, but added that everyone was cooperative in the spirit of helping the community.