Pacific Palisades Fire: A Report and Recovery Update

Regions in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles are at risk of wildfires from the end of summer to late fall. However, climate change may cause fire hazards in any month of the year. This phenomenon can be seen in the Pacific Palisades fire that occurred in January 2025.

This fire is exceptionally eminent due to its massive scale. The containment of the Pacific Palisades wildfire took weeks. This disaster also affected thousands of people and damaged numerous houses. A year later, the recovery of the Palisades wildfire is still ongoing.

Pacific Palisades Fire: Things to Know About This Fire Hazard

The Palisades wildfire is the most destructive in Los Angeles’ wildfire history. This hazard started on January 7, 2025. The fire then quickly spread to large areas in Palisades and nearby regions. What are the causes of this wildfire? Below is a brief report of this hazard.

1. How Did Palisades Fire Start?

According to an investigation, the cause of Palisades fire was the underground fire from the Lachman Fire. On the night of January 1, 2025, Jonathan Rinderknecht burned bushes and other flora in a small area near Palisades. The Lachman Fire affected an area of roughly 8 acres. 

That night, the LA fire department extinguished this fire. Still, the fire was not fully extinguished. There were remaining embers underground. Strong Santa Ana winds triggered the underground fire to resurface and develop into a wildfire in Palisades on January 7.

Other factors contributed to the spread of this fire to large areas in Palisades and other regions. One of them was extreme drought. 

Before the wildfire, Los Angeles had not received enough rainfall for eight months. Moreover, extreme heat had caused the flora in this region to be dry and flammable.

2. The Impact of the Wildfire

The Palisades wildfire had a massive impact on the local communities. This hazard burned an area of roughly 37 square miles. Severe areas affected by Palisades fire are Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Brentwood, and Topanga Canyon.

This wildfire also burnt down more than 6,800 buildings, most of which are family homes. Some of these buildings are owned by famous celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Billy Crystal. Due to this massive damage, over 100,000 people were displaced. 

In addition, many survivors were reported to have trauma that lasted for months. They said their fire anxiety increased during the Santa Ana wind events. The Palisades wildfire also killed 12 people and injured at least 4 others. In total, the wildfire cost California 95 billion USDs.

Aside from the structural damage and fatalities, the Pacific Palisades wildfire also caused environmental damage. This hazard released a massive amount of toxic materials into the air. 

In the long term, these pollutants may cause health effects on the Palisades residents. The wildfire also destroyed large areas of vegetation. Accordingly, the landslide risks of the affected regions increased during the rainy season.

3. Pacific Palisades Wildfire Containment

The containment of the Palisades wildfire started on January 7. Still, for nearly a week, firefighters did not make progress in stopping the massive fire. On January 12, firefighters had 11% containment. 

Moreover, on January 21, the containment of this wildfire reached 65%. At this point, roughly 6,500 firefighters worked to stop the fire. The wildfire was eventually 100% extinguished on January 31.

The containment of the Palisade wildfires was not easy due to various factors. Strong Santa Ana winds are one of them. In early January, the speed of this wind reached 100 mph. 

This condition caused the embers to spread faster than the firefighters could extinguish. Moreover, the lack of water and topography also affected the containment of the fire. The high demand for water led to dry hydrants, particularly in elevated areas. 

The hilly and steep regions in the Santa Monica Mountains also posed difficulties for firefighters. They could not quickly reach these affected areas to stop the fire. Other factors, including arid weather and power outages, also resulted in the difficult containment of the Palisades wildfire.

Recovery Update of Palisades Wildfire

The effects of the Pacific Palisades wildfire remain for at least a year. According to the report, there were rebuilding delays. In early 2026, only  about 1,400 buildings were under construction. Meanwhile, over 3,000 building applications were issued.

Property prices in Palisades and other affected areas also dropped significantly. Moreover, many survivors were in insurance purgatory. They haven’t received a payout from their insurers.

The Palisades fire was extremely destructive. However, this wildfire only caused a few casualties. This condition is partly due to the excellent alert system in Los Angeles. Other countries can have a similar system if they adopt cell broadcast technology from smsbroadcaster.com.