LA Wildfires – Disaster Recovery Begins

The flames have been quelled in the LA region, but new challenges are arising in the aftermath of its recent wildfire disasters. The data reveal only a glimpse of the enormous obstacles faced by those directly impacted by the blazes (a total of 16,251 structures were lost) while also suggesting the sizable nature of the impediments to recovery the community now faces. Fortunately, resources are available to assist in strategizing a long-term recovery plan and provide immediate guidance and assistance to those in the most urgent need of both.

Immediate Relief Services for Individuals and Families

All relevant governments – state, regional, and local – are involved in providing recovery resources based on their particular suite of resources and jurisdictions. In March, the following agencies have set deadlines for access to the services they are offering:

• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is available with financial assistance to victims of the fires through March 10, 2025, at one of its two local locations:
• 10850 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064 and
• 540 W. Woodbury Road, Altadena, CA, 91001.
• Small businesses have until March 12 to seek general business relief and physical property damages from the LA County Small Business Relief Fund. Explore loan options here.
• Wildfire debris removal assistance is available through March 31 through the Army Corps of Engineers or government-approved contractors. Interested parties can either set up entry permits or opt out of the opportunity (see below for more information).

Next Steps for Home and Business Owners

Damage Assessment, Debris Removal, and Site Safety

The thousands of properties destroyed by the fire must be cleared of hazardous materials such as paints, oils, batteries, and pesticides, among others, before non-hazardous items can be hauled away. Property owners can opt to receive help for this process or they can do it themselves. In either case, the EPA must inspect the site and approve the hazard removal result before it becomes eligible for Phase Two: General Debris Removal. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is assisting with this effort. Owners can also get help with potential mudflows that often happen when natural barriers and streambeds are destroyed.

The Rebuilding Process

State and local governments have joined together to reduce or eliminate the existing red tape and regulations that would typically impede the rebuilding process. Instead, City, County, and State leaders are expediting permit access so those who are ready to start the rebuilding effort can move forward as quickly as possible. Permitting resources are available based on the location of the property:

• The City of LA
• Pasadena
• Malibu
• Sierra Madre

Additionally, One-Stop Permit Centers hosted by Los Angeles County offer permitting information and support for the region’s unincorporated areas. These sites bring together resources from the departments of Public Health, Regional Planning, Geotechnical Engineering, and Public Works to ensure property owners get the comprehensive assistance they need.

Long-term Recovery Strategies for Communities

While each individual property owner attends to their immediate rebuilding needs, whole communities are also in the process of developing a rebuilding strategy. Taking notes from previous similar catastrophes that wiped out the towns of Paradise, CA, in 2018 and Lahaina, HI, in 2023, leaders are now developing plans that will focus on the three elements of a recovery strategy:

• Assess the disaster’s impact on the community infrastructure;
• Design responses to the challenges arising from that infrastructural damage, and
• Generate recovery projects that both resolve the immediate incapacities while also building in resiliencies that will protect from or defend against future disasters.

Paradise, CA

The small town of Paradise, CA, offers a real-world example of how to manage a community-wide disaster recovery effort. In 2019, residents gathered to discuss not just what needed doing to repair and rebuild the loss of a significant percentage of its resources, but also to formulate improvements over past practices that would benefit the town in the long run. The small population based its Long-Term Recovery Plan on five tenets that would set the foundation for future growth by making it:

1. Safer – by adding prevention attributes combined with emergency preparedness and early warning systems;
2. Stronger – by redirecting utilities underground to protect essential services;
3. Better – by incorporating more communal spaces to foster community and economic growth;
4. Greener – by investing in environmentally safe and stable materials for rebuilding purposes and
5. More Welcoming – by ensuring the inclusion of affordable and sustainable housing, businesses, and public works.

The final version of the plan was in place by 2022, and the 2024/2025 Recovery Action Plan Report revealed numerous successes. Examples include:

• All 21 Early Warning towers were installed and operational by June 30, 2024.
• Implementation of a Fiscal Sustainability budgeting model that extends funding for the local government well into the future and
• Completing the new sewer project design with an eye to contractor canvassing and selection.

Since the 2018 disaster, Paradise has experienced a 35% growth in its population, attracted more than 350 new businesses, and added new schools and recreation areas. It is moving steadily toward a complete implementation of its full Recovery Plan.

Lahaina, HI

The island town of Lahaina, HI, is just two years into its recovery process after a devastating 2023 fire wiped out the entire downtown area except for its famous Banyon Tree. The fire destroyed 2,200 structures, causing more than $5.5 billion in damages. More than 100 people died in the conflagration. In the 18 months since the flames were extinguished, Lahaina has followed a similar path to recovery as Paraside did, and that is anticipated for the LA area, too.

• 100% of both residential and commercial properties are now cleared of debris;
• The Kealamoka Fleming Road Sewer line is 99% repaired, with full completion expected by March 15, 2025, and
• Hundreds of building permits have been issued. As of February 28th, 11 properties have completed their construction rebuild projects.

Like Paradise and (soon) the LA region, Lahaina’s Long-Term Recovery Plan encompasses economic recovery, enhanced housing and commercial development, and better protections for natural and built resources.

LA’s populations – residents, businesses, and industries – are all affected by the fires in one way or another. Recovery resources are available for those who were directly impacted. At the same time, governments and agencies are devising the plans needed to bring the whole community back to – or better than – its former glory. The two towns of Paradise, CA, and Lahaina, HI, are excellent examples of how growth can emerge even from tragedy, giving heart to Los Angeles and all entities that call it home.