On first session of New Year, LA City Council marks 1-year anniversary of wildfires

By JOSE HERRERA

City Councilwoman Traci Park on Friday commemorated the one-year anniversary of the January 2025 wildfires with a presentation at City Hall, honoring the lives lost in the Palisades and Eaton fires.

Park led a presentation Friday morning in the Council Chamber during the City Council’s first session of the new year following a three-week recess. The councilwoman, who represents Pacific Palisades, recounted the events that unfolded beginning Jan. 7, 2025, and continuing through the days until the fires were fully contained, and the ensuing months that followed with clean-up and rebuilding.

The Palisades Fire killed 12 people, while the Eaton Fire took the lives of 19 others in Altadena, an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County.

“We continue holding their families close in our hearts,” said Park, who led a moment of silence to remember the individuals who died.

She described the Palisades Fire as the city’s “worst disaster in its 240-year history.”

Park hailed the resilience of the community, and how residents organized block by block when there was no roadmap for recovery, and insurance and bureaucratic processes felt impossible to navigate alone.

“This organized coordination lasted not for days, but for months, and that work continues today,” Park said.

Park thanked residents across the city for donating and offering help without condition, as well as the volunteers, first responders, workers, faith groups, nonprofits and businesses that stepped in to fill the gaps before government systems could catch up.

The councilwoman hailed the work of her team, city departments, California National Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the American Red Cross, and so many others.

“So colleagues and friends, we all know that recovery doesn’t happen in a year, and while the progress is undeniable for many families, the hardest part is still unfolding,” Park said. “Thousands are still navigating insurance and finance challenges.”

“We owe these victims urgency. We owe them clarity, and we owe them a long term commitment to restore what was lost,” Park added.

The councilwoman emphasized that every neighborhood in Los Angeles is just one disaster from devastation.

“The lesson in this tragedy can’t be about what went wrong. It must be about what we do to make it right. Let’s honor the past by protecting the future, and move forward together with purpose, intention and resolve,” Park said.

Park’s remarks came two days after the official one-year anniversary of the start of the fires.

On Wednesday, numerous commemorations and tributes occurred in the devastated communities and throughout the city and county of Los Angeles —including flags flying at half-staff at City Hall, county buildings and at all state buildings.

Pacific Palisades fire survivors have criticized the city and fire department for its handling of the disaster, pointing to failures with pre-deployment of fire engines and crews, a reservoir that sat empty during the emergency, and a watered down high-profile after-action report on the city’s response.

At the same time, many fire survivors have said they hold onto hope for renewal, restoring their community. Many are facing the hard decision of whether to rebuild and return, or not at all.