Reflections on our Week Amid LA’s Smoke and Flames
Our Disrupted JPB EH Fellows Workshop
From the security of our 10th-floor Santa Monica hotel conference room, we could see the earliest flickers of the Palisades Fire by 11am Tuesday morning, January 7th. On that fateful day, the relentless Santa Ana winds rapidly spread the flames, consuming blocks in mere minutes, as they raced down the mountain slopes towards homes, schools, and businesses. We held onto hope that the firefighters on the ground and planes above would soon extinguish the blaze, but by 5pm it was painfully clear that something disastrous was unfolding just miles away.
With a heavy heart, I said goodbye to a tearful Lara, an Associate Professor at UCLA and one of our Senior Fellows, who rushed home to meet her friends whose house was completely lost in the Palisades Fire. Assured that the winds would hold to the northwest, the rest of us dispersed across Santa Monica to our prearranged dinner meetings, navigating the intense wind gusts and falling debris with caution.
Returning to the hotel later that evening, the lobby had filled with families seeking refuge. People paced the lobby, many with their pets not knowing what to do. A couple shared the anguish of watching their home succumb to the flames. Thankfully the winds from the Palisades Fire shifted late that evening, and we made the decision to carry on with our workshop program the next day.
Early Wednesday morning, January 8th, we learned the Eaton Fire had grown unbelievably fast and there were large evacuations in Altadena and Pasadena. From our conference room window, we could see smoke that had moved northwest over the ocean in a thick plume. Then within a few hours the winds picked up in the Palisades and the fires raged towards Malibu as an eerie sunset-like haze took over the landscape. The acreage burned skyrocketed from a few thousand acres to 10,000 and over 5,000 structures were reduced to cinders and ash.
By Wednesday afternoon, USC and UCLA were forced to close and our activities scheduled for Thursday were canceled. Later in the day the flames jumped the Pacific Coast Highway, devastating Malibu beach homes and even the iconic Hollywood sign was in peril as the fires grew. It was time to end our workshop, rebook flights and escape the chaos. Santa Monica had become blanketed in a pall of smoke and ash.
In conversations with our gracious hotel staff coordinators Carlos and Sofia, we began to truly grasp the far-reaching implications of these fires on people’s lives, even those living far from the destruction. Groups were canceling meetings planned for January and February. The hotel was clearing out and the staff worried there would be insufficient work as the community struggled to recover. These fires had disrupted the lives and livelihoods of so many and their economic future was now uncertain.
In times when community is our greatest strength, we are proud of our Fellows who have united to address the challenges posed by wildland-urban interface fires. Leveraging their expertise in air pollution, occupational health, and environmental science, they are advancing our understanding of both the immediate health risks from smoke exposure and the potential long-term impacts of fly ash and other debris on water, soil, and surrounding ecosystems. Rapid response is critical to supporting the community’s recovery, including efforts to clean and remediate homes affected by this disaster. During the workshop, several of our Fellows installed air quality apps on the phones of hotel staff and some guests, explaining how they work and how to interpret the information. We are organizing Zoom sessions with our Fellows, their colleagues, and students at USC and UCLA to explore how we can assist—whether through guest lectures, teaching a class, or lending instruments.
As we reflect on our experience, it is clear we were on the front lines of climate change. California’s winter rains never materialized, and the Santa Ana winds that ravaged LA were highly unusual for January, a testament to the shifting weather patterns driven by our warming world.
Our hearts go out to all those whose lives have been upended, whether by the immediate devastation of lost life, homes, schools and businesses or the rippling economic impacts that will be felt for months to come. It is heartening to see people come together in resilience, solidarity and kindness. The JPB EH Fellowship Program is guided by the principles of Justice, Peace, and Benevolence. We ask, how can we assist? What can we do? We are committed to offering support as LA embarks on the long journey to recovery.
