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After the Fires: Los Angeles Neighborhoods Start to Rebuild

After the Fires: Los Angeles Neighborhoods Start to Rebuild

The Atlantic11-06-2025

Five months ago, the Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, and several other blazes destroyed more than 18,000 houses and buildings. June 11, 2025, 2:25 PM ET An aerial view of properties cleared of wildfire debris that were burned in the Eaton Fire on May 22, 2025, in Altadena, California. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that it has cleared 5,000 properties in the Eaton Fire and Palisades Fire burn zones, which represents half of the eligible properties, in just three months. Hans Gutknecht / MediaNews Group / The Los Angeles Daily News / Getty A house is under construction on De Pauw Sreet in Pacific Palisades, after much of the neighborhood was destroyed by the Palisades Fire, seen on June 3, 2025. Cal/OSHA workers remove hazardous materials from a home destroyed by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, on April 24, 2025. Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times / Getty Temescal Canyon is being used to break down and recycle debris and material from the Palisades Fire, seen on April 17, 2025. Vehicles that were destroyed in the Eaton Fire are staged for disposal on May 22, 2025, in Altadena, California. An aerial view of rebuild work under way months after the Palisades Fire, on June 3, 2025, in Los Angeles, California Construction begins in the Palisades Fire devastation zone in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, on April 24, 2025. Flowers bloom at a home that was destroyed in the Eaton Fire, as grasses begin to grow along a burned hillside in the distance, seen on April 10, 2025, in Altadena. Following winter rains in the region, new vegetation growth is appearing in the Eaton Fire and Palisades Fire burn areas. Sarah Reingewirtz / MediaNews Group / Los Angeles Daily News / Getty CAP.LA collects a soil-core sample from the site of a burned house in the Eaton Fire burn area in Altadena on April 24, 2025. At no charge to property owners, CAP.LA has been checking surface and soil-core samples in both the Eaton Fire and Palisades Fire areas. A demolition crew uses excavators to tear down a business destroyed by the Palisades Fire, on May 7, 2025, in Pacific Palisades. Hans Gutknecht / MediaNews Group / The Los Angeles Daily News / Getty A sign stands outside a home destroyed by the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades on June 3, 2025. An aerial view of a mobile-home park that was destroyed by the Palisades Fire, seen on May 7, 2025, in Pacific Palisades The moon rises as ocean waves wash up along the remains of properties destroyed in the Palisades Fire, seen on April 11, 2025, in Malibu. Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times / Getty Kids paint on a banner for 'Stronger Together: Community Recovery and Resilience,' an event co-hosted by the Altadena Coalition and Pali Strong for survivors of the Eaton Fire and the Palisades Fire, at the Santa Monica Pier, on May 6, 2025, in Santa Monica. Pacific Palisades property owner DeAnn Heline stands in front of her home, which is being rebuilt after the Palisades Fire, on April 24, 2025. A controlled fire conducted by members of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Los Angeles Fire Department is seen on top of the Temescal Ridge Trail while ATF agents investigate the Palisades Fire, on April 29, 2025, in Pacific Palisades. Workers clear a lot next to a new home under construction in a neighborhood destroyed by the Palisades Fire, on May 7, 2025, in Pacific Palisades. Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times / Getty Cleared lots of several destroyed buildings, seen before reconstruction work, in Malibu, on May 28, 2025 Actor John Goodman's house, which was destroyed in the Palisades Fire, seen on April 9, 2025, in Pacific Palisades Eric Thayer / Bloomberg / Getty Construction on a building in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, seen on May 29, 2025 Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times / Getty Pali students stand during the opening Pledge of Allegiance and national anthem at the Palisades High graduation ceremony, held at the Hollywood Bowl, after their school's campus was heavily damaged by the fire, on June 4, 2025, in Los Angeles.

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