Hey, y’all.  Normally I would start this post by wishing everyone a Happy New Year. Unfortunately, for the residents of Los Angeles, 2025 is starting off on a nightmarish foot.  This past Tuesday (Jan. 7, 2025), a raging wildfire started in the Pacific Palisades. At the time of writing this, the fire already burned approx. 37,000 acres of land and destroyed about 12,000 buildings. 

Other fires are breaking out as well.  The Kenneth fire started around Thursday (Jan. 9, 2025) in the West Hills.  According to local news, the fire is nearly 80% contained.  There’s also been the Sunset Fire, which has burned about 20 acres in Runyon Canyon. The Hurst Fire began around Sylmar, and reports say that it’s 89% contained, but it’s burned through 800 acres. The Close Fire is near Pasadena and Altadena and still at 0% containment. And there’s the Lidia fire that’s burned through 300 acres, but has thankfully been stopped. 

The fire in the Palisades is continuing to grow.  According to news sources, the fire is now moving toward Brentwood and Encino.  Containment is only at 11%, and the death toll has gone up to 16 at this point, with 13 people missing.  The fire is so massive, that a lot of the fire hydrants have run out of water in attempts to suppress it.  Mr. Martin Adams, a former general manager of the Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power, spoke with the Los Angeles Times, and he informed that the hydrants were never equipped to fight a wildfire that’s destroying an entire community.  They were made to put out a fire for a single structure.

Everyone in the Los Angeles area has been affected by this tragedy. Many people are now homeless and have lost loved ones.  Even some celebrities have lost their homes.  Jhene Aiko, Mel Gibson, Cary Elwes, Billy Crystal, Jeff Bridges, Paris Hilton, Ricki Lake, and Mandy Moore all fell victim to the wildfires.  Mandy Moore was among the few whose home was partially damaged, but the other people named lost nearly everything. 

Why is this happening?  Why are so many fires breaking out in Los Angeles?  When I first heard about the Palisades fire, I thought it was a horrible coincidence.  After all, wildfires—much like mudslides/rock slides and earthquakes—happen quite a bit in California.  However, when I learned that more fires were starting in random places around the city, I found it to be a bit more that just a coincidence.  Then, I found out something else…many homeowners in LA were dropped by their home insurance coverage months before the fires began.

According to CBS News, State Farm dropped approx. 1,600 policies in the Palisades area and 2,000 more in the communities of Brentwood, Calabasas, Hidden Hills, and Monte Nido.  All these communities have been hit—or are at risk of being hit—by the California wildfires.  The state is offering the FAIR plan to residents, which is a type of home insurance that covers natural disasters, including wildfires. But, there’s a catch…the cost of the insurance will be about $3,200.00/yr., which is more than what a Californian normally pays for home insurance coverage.  The FAIR plan also covers less, despite the increase in premiums.  Something in the buttermilk ain’t clean with that.  

Most in the Los Angeles Fire Department and Arson Investigation are ruling out arson, but investigations are still ongoing. There’s been some people arrested for suspected arson in the last few days, so I’m not ruling it out. If these fires are being ignited deliberately, I hope to God the people responsible are brought to justice.  For now, I’ll continue to keep the people of Los Angeles in prayer. Hopefully, these wildfires will soon cease and the poor people that lost their homes and loved ones can find a way to restart again.  Peace.

—Written by Nadiya

So what’s your opinion on the California wildfires?  Do you think the fires were set deliberately, or it is coincidental that there’s multiple breakouts throughout the city?  Let me know in the comment section!