The Palisades Fire was a highly destructive wildfire that began in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County on January 7, 2025, and grew to destroy large areas of Pacific Palisades, Topanga, and Malibu before it was fully contained on January 31. One of a series of wildfires in Southern California driven by extremely powerful Santa Ana winds, it spread to 37 sq mi (95 km2), killed 12 people, and destroyed 6,837 structures, making it the tenth-deadliest and third-most destructive California wildfire on record and the second most destructive to occur in the history of the city of Los Angeles. The fire burned simultaneously with the similarly destructive Eaton Fire at the foothills of the nearby San Gabriel Mountains.
On October 8, federal authorities arrested a man in Florida and charged him with three felony counts of arson, alleging that he used a combustible material to set an eight-acre (3.2 ha) fire on January 1 named the Lachman Fire that was not fully extinguished by the Los Angeles Fire Department and later reignited to become the Palisades Fire. On June 26, 2026, a mistrial was declared in the man's federal trial.
Background
In early January 2025, a strong high-pressure system over the Great Basin created a steep northerly pressure gradient across Southern California. The system triggered powerful Santa Ana winds, katabatic winds that can develop when cooler, dense inland air is funneled through mountain passes and canyons toward the warmer coastal regions.
The area had experienced "eight months without any measurable rainfall", and much of the region had fallen into moderate drought conditions. A battalion chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) told the Los Angeles Times that the conditions were "the perfect recipe for a large wildfire". The National Weather Service (NWS) issued red flag warnings on the morning of January 6, effective through Thursday evening, for multiple regions, including the Malibu coast, Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area, and the San Gabriel, San Fernando, and Santa Clarita valleys.
NWS predicted a "life-threatening" windstorm and Santa Ana wind gusts were forecast to reach speeds of 60–80 miles per hour (97–129 km/h), with some gusts anticipated to reach 90 mph (140 km/h) in mountainous areas. Residents were urged to "use extreme caution with anything that can spark a wildfire" and those near forests to be prepared to evacuate. The danger posed by the windstorm and weather patterns led Caltrans to close several roads, including Topanga Canyon Boulevard between Mulholland Drive and Pacific Coast Highway.
As is common in red flag warnings, CAL FIRE pre-positioned firefighting assets across Southern California. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power topped off all three of its 1-million-gallon water tanks in the area affected by the red flag warning, a precaution against the loss of water pressure during the sudden demands of firefighting, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these efforts, 20 percent of fire hydrants eventually ran out of water in the more elevated parts of Pacific Palisades.
Progression
The fire was first reported at about 10:30 a.m. PST on January 7, 2025, covering around 10 acres (4.0 ha) of the mountains near Pacific Palisades. It quickly spread due to a combination of severe drought in Southern California (the driest 9-month period on record), and a worsening Santa Ana wind event. Within 20 minutes, the fire grew from 20 acres (8.1 ha) to 200 acres (81 ha). The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) said the blaze had reached more than 700 acres (280 ha) by 2:10 p.m., with over 250 firefighters fighting it as it started to reach homes. Just one hour later, an update from CAL FIRE stated that the fire had rapidly grown to 1,262 acres (511 ha). Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, toured the fire on January 7, and said that many structures had been destroyed.
The intensification of the concurrent windstorm at night forced the grounding of firefighting aircraft, further hindering efforts to manage the wildfire's spread. The National Weather Service reported the highest wind gust in Pacific Palisades on January 7 was 38 mph (61 km/h) at 6:30 p.m. Firefighters faced significant challenges combating the blaze due to the steep terrain of the Santa Monica Mountains and the strong Santa Ana winds. These conditions hindered both ground and aerial firefighting operations, making containment efforts much more difficult. Firefighters called in from close by states like Oregon and Nevada to continue fighting the blaze. The fire reached the driveway adjacent to the Getty Villa; earlier in the day staff activated the site's fire safety plan which included closing off fire doors, running HVAC and humidity management systems, and turning on irrigation sprinklers. Most of the staff was evacuated but the Getty's crisis operations executives and security staff patrolled throughout the night, taking shifts outside, where they suppressed wind-blown flareups with "at least 40 five-pound fire extinguishers".
At 12:29 a.m. on January 8, a CAL FIRE status report said the fire had grown to 2,921 acres (1,182 ha). Hours later, 1,400 firefighters had been assigned to the fire which continued to grow as several injuries were reported, including a 25-year-old firefighter with a "serious head injury". Several beachfront properties in Malibu were destroyed by the wildfire. In a Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) press conference on the morning of January 8, LACoFD fire chief Anthony Marrone said that the fire had reached a size of more than 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) and had destroyed around 1,000 structures. Robert Luna, the sheriff of Los Angeles County, said that 37,000 people were under evacuation order due to the fire, adding that 15,000 structures were at risk of burning.
A CAL FIRE status report at 11:45 a.m. on January 8 said the fire had grown to 11,802 acres (4,776 ha), a figure which had grown to 15,832 acres (6,407 ha) by 1:20 p.m. In another press conference which began at 3:15 p.m., LAFD fire chief Kristin Crowley said that 1,792 personnel have been deployed to assist in fighting the fire, adding that it was still growing and continued to demand "significant resources". A CAL FIRE status report at 11:10 p.m. said the fire had grown to 17,234 acres (6,974 ha). Human remains were found at a property near the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) following a welfare check conducted due to a missing persons report.
An update from fire authorities on January 9 said that over 5,300 structures had been destroyed by the blaze. It had grown to almost 20,000 acres (8,100 ha; 81 km2; 31 sq mi). A man was detained on suspicion of igniting a fire in Woodland Hills, immediately north of where the fire was burning. In a press conference at 5:20 p.m., Crowley said there had been two deaths due to the fire. At 8:00 p.m., Newsom reported that the fire was six percent contained, after being at zero percent containment for more than 55 hours. A CAL FIRE status report at 6:45 p.m. said the fire had grown to 19,978 acres (8,085 ha). A firefighting aircraft collided with a drone while it was over the fire, suffering a hole in its wing but landing safely with no casualties. At 9:15 p.m., authorities reported that the death toll from all fires had risen to ten, with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner (DMEC) saying that the remains were still being identified.
On January 10, a CAL FIRE status report at 7:39 a.m. said the fire had grown to 20,438 acres (8,271 ha). During an update at 8:00 a.m., Crowley reported that the fire was at eight percent containment, with 3,073 personnel fighting it. Another CAL FIRE report at 9:20 a.m. said there had been three civilian injuries and two civilian fatalities, a number which increased to three by 12:08 p.m. Another update at 2:33 p.m. said the fire was at 21,317 acres (8,627 ha) and was still at eight percent containment, while an update from the DMEC said five fire-related deaths had taken place in areas affected by the blaze, namely Malibu, Pacific Palisades and Topanga. This number was later revised to three. Late on January 10, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health declared a local health emergency in response to the fires and issued a Public Health Officer Order prohibiting the use of leaf blowers to improve air quality.
In a press conference at 8:00 a.m. on January 11, Todd Hopkins from the Unified IC CAL FIRE Incident Management Team said that the fire was at 11 percent containment and had grown by 1,000 acres (400 ha) overnight. He also said 105,000 people had evacuated as 426 homes were destroyed. That same day, the fire began to march towards Mandeville Canyon, new evacuation orders were made for the Tarzana and Encino neighborhoods, with evacuation warnings extending to south of Ventura Boulevard in Encino and western parts of Bel Air. At least one home in Mandeville Canyon had burned. A CAL FIRE status report at 9:39 a.m. said the fire had grown to 22,660 acres (9,170 ha); by 4:37 p.m. it had grown to 23,654 acres (9,572 ha). The DMEC said that the death toll of all fires had risen to 16: five in the Palisades Fire and 11 in the Eaton Fire. Doug Stewart, the mayor of Malibu, said one third of the city had been lost, adding that homes along the Pacific Coast Highway and the Big Rock neighborhood were 'gone'.
On January 12, a CAL FIRE status report at 6:33 a.m. said the fire had grown to 23,707 acres (9,594 ha). At 8:00 a.m., city officials held a press conference, where Crowley said 4,720 personnel were assigned to the blaze; Luna said that during a search of 364 properties three dead people were found and four people had been arrested for looting. A status report at 11:13 a.m. said the fire was at 23,713 acres (9,596 ha); after that the fire's growth ceased. At 5:00 p.m., the DMEC released an update stating that the death toll of all fires had risen to 24, eight of which were in the Palisades area. One of them died in hospital after succumbing to their injuries.
By January 14, the death toll for the Palisades Fire had risen to nine, with a total of 25 deaths across the Palisades and Eaton fires. On January 16, the death toll rose to 10.
At the peak of firefighting efforts on January 19, assets from across the western US and international crews from both Canada and Mexico were deployed: firefighting personnel totaled over 5,677 across 551 fire engines, 42 water tenders, 43 helicopters, 48 bulldozers, 101 hand crews and 17 other assigned resources. Canada sent Canadair CL-415 aircraft to assist with containing the blaze. On January 21, a CAL FIRE status report at 6:32 p.m. revised the fire's size to 23,448 acres (9,489 ha), adding that it was at 65 percent containment. On January 30, the final CAL FIRE status report at 5:35 p.m. reported the fire at 95 percent containment, having caused 12 deaths and four injuries, as well as destroying 6,837 structures. By January 31, the fire had been fully contained after 24 days.
Evacuation
In a LAFD press conference on January 7, at 3:40 p.m., fire chief Kristin Crowley said that over 30,000 people were under evacuation orders, with more than 10,000 houses and 13,000 buildings under threat. During the conference, Marqueece Harris-Dawson, the president of Los Angeles City Council and acting mayor, declared a state of emergency in response to the fire.
During the hectic evacuation, some roads became gridlocked. In some areas, residents were seen fleeing their vehicles along the Pacific Coast Highway and taking refuge in the ocean to escape the advancing flames. As flames moved closer, people abandoned their cars and fled for their lives, some taking their keys with them; bulldozers were later called in to move almost 200 such vehicles off the road to make way for emergency vehicles. The Los Angeles Police Department sent around 140 officers to assist with evacuations and gridlock. Fire department officials issued an Emergency Alert System message, which was relayed by the National Weather Service, to notify residents of the evacuations, and subsequently ordered residents unable to evacuate to shelter in place. At 2:30 p.m. on January 8, an evacuation order covering part of Santa Monica was expanded to cover all areas north of Montana Avenue from the beach to 11th Street, with evacuation warnings for additional areas north of Montana Avenue and areas north of Wilshire Boulevard and west of 10th Street.
On January 10 at 6:00 p.m., evacuation warnings extended northeast, with the warnings changing to orders within the hour for the area enclosed by Sunset Boulevard to the south, Encino Reservoir to the north, I-405 to the east, and Mandeville Canyon to the west. Communities in this area include parts of Tarzana and Encino in the San Fernando Valley.
Evacuation orders were lifted on January 27, when the City of Los Angeles allowed resident-only access to the previously mandatory-evacuation areas.