When Sophie Szeder visited her friends in the Pacific Palisades Jan. 4, the friendly community was full of life and lush greenery. By Jan. 8, most of the neighborhood had burned to the ground, leaving thousands displaced and uncertain of the future.
“Now, it’s all black and ashy,” said Szeder, a fourth-year biology major from Cheviot Hills, Calif.
Over the past three days, wildfires have consumed Los Angeles County, burning more than 35,000 acres. The lack of rainfall, low humidity and intense Santa Ana winds have made LA County vulnerable to the wildfire’s rapid spread.
As of Jan. 10, 180,000 people have evacuated their homes and businesses, with another 200,000 people under evacuation warnings, as multiple major fires have broken out in the county. The death toll has reached 10 people. The Pacific Palisades fire, which is the largest and most damaging of the fires currently burning, now covers more than 20,000 acres and has destroyed an estimated 5,000 structures, making it the most destructive fire in LA County history. Currently, the Palisades fires are 8% contained. Damages are now estimated to reach $57 billion.
Despite being nearly 3,000 miles away, many Northeastern students from Southern California are trying to navigate how to watch the destruction unfold online while far from home.
“Almost all of my friends had to evacuate as well,” Szeder said. “My friends are having some of their friends stay in their houses, and other families are separated.”
To stay up to date on the wildfires, Szeder has been watching local news broadcasts from the area and utilizing Watch Duty, an app designed to track wildfires.
Palisades Charter High School, or PCHS, Szeder’s alma mater and the school her brother currently attends, has sustained significant damage like many other schools in the area. PCHS students are set to return for the second semester of the school year Jan. 14; however, the campus is temporarily closed due to damages, according to a notice on the school’s website.
Andie Dokmanovich, a third-year human services and psychology combined major, described how difficult it is to watch her home go up in flames from across the country.
“There’s a lot of residual guilt over not being there and not being able to help more. It’s just terrible to see so many places that you’ve known your whole life up in flames on social media,” said Dokmanovich, who is from Redondo Beach, Calif. “I really do wish there was more that I could do to help.”
The family of Mia Ferrante, a fourth-year industrial engineering major from Torrance, Calif., has been dealing with “unhealthy” air quality, as announced by the City of Torrance Jan. 8, 2024. Torrance, located in a southwest part of LA County, has been in the direct path of the Santa Ana winds, which heavily contributes to the bad air quality.
“Even though we’re miles away from the actual fire, there’s a bunch of ashes outside of my house because the winds are blowing all of them in our direction,” Ferrante said.
Studies show climate change has significantly contributed to the intensity of the fires. Although high winds have been the primary driver of the fire’s spread, swings between wet and dry years in California have contributed to the flammability of trees, shrubs and grasses, according to a study published in Nature Reviews.
“I’m hoping this shows everyone, or those who don’t believe, that change is coming. It’s happening,” Ferrante said.
Despite the devastation, the Southern California community is rallying to support each other.
“I think that community is such an integral part of it all. Even from afar, you can still see the wealth and abundance of love coming from everyone in Southern California,” Dokmanovich said. “That really brings me hope, especially when it’s just so devastating to witness.”
Campus editor Zoe MacDiarmid contributed reporting.
