How will calamity change Los Angeles?
Short-sighted policies amplified the destruction. Will LA–and California–learn from their mistakes?
“MY HUSBAND saw a glow on the hill,” explains Laurie Bilotta. She is standing in her backyard in Pasadena pointing at Eaton Canyon, where the Eaton Fire broke out on January 7th. In the few seconds it took for Bob, her husband, to yell “Fire!”, the flames were as tall as she was. Then “the whole mountain just exploded. There were just flames everywhere.” The couple grabbed their two Siamese cats and drove south towards safety. By a miracle their house survived.
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This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “The fires—and next time”
United States
January 18th 2025
From the January 18th 2025 edition
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