Six months after the fatal Palisade fire tore more than 23,000 acres of land and destroy thousands of homes and businesses, the Los Angeles Fire Department announced on Sunday that all evacuation orders for the affected zones have been officially lifted.
“The evacuation order has been lifted completely for all zones affected by the Palisade fire,” read the LAFD alert. Click here to view a map of the zones within this order.
These zones have been under evacuation orders since January 7th since fires and fueled extreme Santa Ana-style events, tore the Southern California coast. Residents were allowed to slowly re-train local reorganizations within weeks of the fire, but authorities had previously held evacuation orders in place due to the toxic and dangerous conditions in the area.
It was unclear whether anything specific happened on Sunday, according to LAFD spokesman Lyndsey Lantz, but the Health Department recently reached a consensus that it completely eliminated the air and soil dangers it discovered during cleanup by the EPA and other organizations.
These satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies show homes before and after the Palisard fire in the Pacific Palisade district of Los Angeles on October 20, 2024 and January 9, 2025 (Maxar Technologies via the AP)
“To this general point, it was a legally high risk area,” said Lantz. “But now the debris has been cleared and the area has been restored to normal state.”
Lantz also said this means that all traffic stops and housing passes requirements will be lifted and people can enter and exit the area freely. The announcement has also fallen short of a short time since major roads and highways such as the Pacific Coast Expressway and Topanga Canyon Boulevard were reopened.
These satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies show the homes before and after the Palisades Fire, October 20, 2024, January 8, 2025, along the Pacific Coast Highway and Muna Canyon.
Residents are trying to line up and return home to get back to the house within a week of the fire. Law enforcement provided escorts, and many evacuees waited for hours (all the day) to get minutes with the rest of the house.
One family said they have already learned the fate of their beloved property, but they need to see it firsthand for some degree of closure.
When each resident or family member passed the checkpoint, they checked their property, grabbed anything they could save, then received their allotted time to return to their car and leave the area before the 6pm curfew.
Smoke is considered to be burning as a brush burn at Pacific Paris Festival, California on January 7, 2025. Fast Burss Fires in the Los Angeles suburbs on Tuesday caused evacuation as “life-threatening” winds whipped the area. Over 200 acres (80 hectares) were burning in the Palisades in the Pacific Ocean. This is an upscale location with multi-million dollar homes in the Santa Monica Mountains, which closed the Key Highway and covered the area with thick smoke. (Photo: David Swanson/AFP) (Photo by David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images) The smoke plume is seen as a brush burn in the Pacific Ocean, seen from Santa Monica, California on January 7, 2025. Palisade fire burned on January 7th, 2025. (KTLA) Palisade fire burns on January 7, 2025. Palisade fire burns on January 7th, 2025. (KTLA) Palisade fire burns on January 7, 2025. Smoke from the Pacific Palisade fire will rise on Tuesday, January 7, 2025 to the Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica, California. Tuesday, January 7th, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope) Alert California camera view of brush fires in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles County. January 7, 2024 (Alert California) Alert California Camera View of Brush Fires in the Pacific Palisades Area of Los Angeles County. January 7, 2024 (Alert California) A fire burning in Pallisard in the Pacific Ocean will be seen on January 7, 2024. (KTLA) The Palisade Fire will burn on January 7th, 2025. (KTLA) The Palisade Fire will burn on January 7th, 2025. (KTLA) The Palisade fire will be burned on January 7th, 2025. (KTLA) Firefighters will attempt to wipe out the fire in order to damage property in the Pacific Pallisard district on Tuesday, January 7, 2025. Flames and smoke from the fire at the 2025 (KTLA) Pacific Palisades can be seen in the hill behind the house in Santa Monica, California. (Getty Images) On Tuesday, January 7, 2025, flames rise as the Palisade fire progresses at a home in the Pacific Palisade district of Los Angeles. On Tuesday, January 7, 2025, a helicopter (AP Photo/Ethan Swarpe) in Los Angeles’ Pacific Palisade district approaches his property in the Pacific Palisade district, illuminating flames from Palisade. Tuesday, January 7th, 2025, Pacific Palisade District, Los Angeles (AP Photo/Ethan Swarpe) A giant bulldozer (KTLA) pushing abandoned vehicles near the Pallisade Fire on January 7th, 2024. Flames erupt on January 7th, 2025. (TNLA) Flames seen behind Firehouse 23 along Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Parliad on January 7, 2025.
Over the next few days, authorities urged evacuees to be patient and said no resy has occurred until all areas are deemed safe. “The conversation about reenactment is in all of our hearts,” said LA County Sheriff Robert Luna. “Please hold on with us… we have someone literally looking for the ruins of your neighbor.”
As a result of the Palisade fire, Cal Fire has confirmed at least 12 civilian deaths, three civilian injuries and one firefighter injury.
Efforts to rebuild communities affected by the fires in both Pallisard and Eaton will continue. Click here to learn more about resources and how to find or provide help.
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