Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan tell PEOPLE the devastation in Los Angeles “takes your breath away,” but the residents’ “hope and resilience” is even more powerful

Co-anchors Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts during ‘Good Morning America’ from Los Angeles on Jan. 17. Photo: Eric McCandless/ABC

Update: As of Jan. 24, Good Morning America‘s SoCal Strong fund has raised over $9.7 million for victims of the L.A. wildfires following Thrive Causemetics and Bigger Than Beauty Skincare’s $500,000 donation. The total reflects both viewer and corporate donations.

Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan had a midnight wake-up call on Friday, Jan. 17 to broadcast live on Good Morning America from Los Angeles amid the ongoing devastation from the wildfires.

From the time they landed in L.A. on Thursday afternoon, Roberts, 64, tells PEOPLE they “went right out to Altadena to spend time with families” whose stories they would be spotlighting on the Friday broadcast.

“As soon as I landed, I was hearing from family and friends back on the East Coast: ‘Have you seen it yet? Is it as bad as it seems on TV?’ And when you’re looking at it — and I’ve been in the war zones and all that — it’s like, wow. It just takes your breath away,” she says. “It looked worse than it does on TV.”

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“My producer, my executive producer, who was with me in Kiev, in Ukraine, right after the start of that war, she said, ‘Be prepared. It’s worse than that,'” Roberts recalls. “I’m like, ‘No, it can’t be.’ And yes, it was.”

Strahan, 53, who is in L.A. every weekend for NFL coverage, agrees, admitting the city felt “different” right away. “There’s a little sadness, there’s still some fear, but there’s also a lot of hope and resilience, and you can feel everybody pulling together.”

Co-anchors Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts speak to L.A. firefighters and their families on ‘Good Morning America’ on Jan. 17.Eric McCandless/ABC

During the broadcast, which expanded ABC News’ SoCal Strong coverage, Strahan and Roberts highlighted several of the communities that were impacted by the wildfires that began on Jan. 7, particularly in the Altadena neighborhood.

Roberts says the Jenkins family, who “go back generations” in the area, lost nine homes amongst all of their family members in the fires. “What really strikes me about that family — and the others I’ve met: their genuine strength,” she says.

“They’re like, ‘We’re rebuilding. We’re not going anywhere,'” Strahan adds. “And just hearing that was, like, ‘Wow.’ It just shows the strength, the positivity and resilience of the people and the community.”

Co-anchors Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts speak to the Jenkins family about the devastation of the L.A. wildfires on ‘Good Morning America’ on Jan. 17.Eric McCandless/ABC

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The GMA co-anchors also met Walt, an 83-year-old Altadena resident whose tear-filled interview on Big Talk went viral last week as he broke down over all he’d lost.

Roberts says she hopes the coverage will help viewers realize that “it’s okay to ask for help like Walter did.”

“A man who, it crushes his soul, because he takes pride in [the fact] that he’s been the one that has helped so many, and he never thought he’d be in the position to be the one who needs help,” she says.

Walt was also a particular source of inspiration amid the devastation. “Michael and I kept saying, ‘Wait a minute. Wait. We’re supposed to be lifting you guys up. You aren’t supposed to be lifting our spirits.’ But it was true. It was very uplifting to be in their presence,” Roberts says.

Strahan agrees. “We left there feeling hopeful, because they said, ‘We’re not going anywhere. We’re going to rebuild. We want this community back. This is our legacy.'”

Michael Strahan with Pasadena firefighter Charlie Hawes and his mother on ‘Good Morning America’ on Jan. 17.Eric McCandless/ABC

They also spoke to several of the heroes who have been saving lives for the last 10 days, including Pasadena fire department firefighter Charlie Hawes and fire engineer Chien Yu, both of whom lost their own homes while fighting fires elsewhere.

Hawes was joined by his mother for an interview with Roberts and Strahan — which also featured firefighters Jerry and Isaac and their families, along with Yu — and he had come straight from a shift to make the broadcast.

“To see him literally come from his shift at the firehouse to the show, because they wanted to represent all the firefighters that were out there, and just show them, ‘Hey, we’re going to represent all of us here on GMA, so I’m going to leave my shift and go straight to GMA on no sleep, and then go home and spend some time with my family before I go back to work,’ I can’t imagine,'” Strahan says. “It just goes to show that these firefighting men and women truly, truly, truly think about more than just themselves.”

Roberts adds of Hawes’ mother, who was emotional at times during the broadcast: “The pride she has for her son, these firefighters, I can’t imagine. You are putting your life on the line to save someone else’s home — while your home is burning.”

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Roberts is especially proud that the team “didn’t come empty-handed,” as more than $6 million was raised by GMA, all of which will go to “local organizations and charities” and “the families who need it on the ground.”

“Every little bit helps, and at the end of the day, those millions, I think, are going to really, really give relief to a lot of people,” Strahan says.

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It was also special to get to “thank” their colleagues, Matt Gutman and Kayna Whitworth, who have been covering the fires on the ground for over a week. “It meant so much to those that have been covering this for us to be able [to be there], and it meant a lot to them that we were bringing a national spotlight to it.”

Roberts and Strahan also joined their GMA3: What You Need to Know colleagues during their broadcast to reflect on what they’d seen on the ground in L.A.

“With our SoCal Strong effort, the GMA family is showing up to help families in need,” senior executive producer Simone Swink tells PEOPLE in a statement. “We want to take our viewers into the community of Altadena which has been ravaged by the fires, and we want to help raise money for local charities on the ground helping people get back on their feet.”