LOS ANGELES – At a virtual town hall she organized today, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said that Sunday’s 8:00 AM reopening of the Palisades will be accompanied by a zero tolerance LAPD surge to keep the community safe. Mayor Bass was joined today by Councilmember Traci Park, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell, District Attorney Nathan Hochman and City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto.
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell noted that 33 patrol cars are being deployed 24/7 in the Palisades along with new automated license plate readers. Prior to the fires, the Palisades usually had two officers in one car patrolling the area. He also noted that areas in the jurisdiction of the LA County Sheriff that have previously been opened after the fires have not seen an increase in crime.
On Sunday, February 2nd at 8:00 AM, the checkpoints on PCH will be removed and LAPD will surge a strategic presence into the Palisades community.
LAPD will maintain a command post at Will Rogers State Beach, and police deployment will include a strike force patrolling across the Palisades. Until Sunday at 8:00am, Lot 3 will remain operational in handing out resident access passes until the official opening of the Palisades.
Governor Newsom has also deployed additional California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers along the Pacific Coast Highway, with a marked patrol vehicle stationed every half-mile along the state-owned Right-of-Way to protect motorists, traffic flow, and public safety between Santa Monica and Malibu.
With hazardous materials throughout the area, unstable burned buildings and utility crews, other workers, and heavy equipment hard at work, Angelenos are asked to exercise extreme caution.
This opening will be monitored closely by the Mayor’s Office and the City of Los Angeles, LAPD, CHP, the National Guard, CalTrans, and more for a smooth and safe transition. The Mayor’s Office will continue to hold regular virtual community meetings to keep the community informed on the transition.
On PCH:
There will be one lane open in each direction between McClure Tunnel and Carbon Beach Terrace.
A 25 mph speed limit will be in place.
All signals will be flashing red.
Avoid the area if possible as extreme congestion is expected.
Be mindful of the active construction zone. Watch for trucks moving in and out.
Progress on Debris Removal:
Phase 1:
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is removing Household Hazardous Materials (HHM), including paints, solvents, asbestos debris, lithium-ion batteries, and pressurized fuel cylinders. This is the first step toward recovery and rebuilding.
- EPA teams have assessed over 2,115 parcels in the Palisades area.
- Property owners can visit recovery.lacounty.gov/debris-removal for updates and next steps.
Phase 2:
- Survivors can either select the Army Corps of Engineers to remove debris from their property or hire a private contractor. Residents can click here to start this process.
- The deadline to participate in this program is March 31, 2025. More information here.
For assistance, Angelenos can call (844) 347-3332 or visit a Disaster Recovery Center for in-person support. Centers are open 9 AM to 8 PM.
Hazardous materials from burned properties require special handling and safe disposal by EPA’s cleanup crews. These materials will be sent to licensed disposal facilities (not municipal landfills). The EPA has been assessing and preparing to remove the first phase of debris - hazardous materials such as lithium batteries, asbestos, paints, cleaners and pesticides.
As part of the hazardous material removal work, U.S. EPA has also been tasked to safely remove batteries from electric and hybrid vehicles and home backup power supplies. According to the EPA, lithium-ion batteries should be considered extremely dangerous. For questions about this work or if you have an electric or hybrid vehicle and/or a battery energy storage system in the burn area, call the EPA hotline at 1-833-798-7372, dial 711, or email EPALAWildfiresInfo@epa.gov.
Protect yourself from health and environmental hazards:
Wear a tight fitting N95 Mask or greater.
Wear household dishwashing gloves, long-sleeved shirts and long pants.
Wear safety goggles, not safety glasses.
Do not use leaf blowers or other equipment such as vacuum cleaners that may cause dust particles to be airborne.
Unified Command encourages residents who are re-entering the evacuation area to enter at their own risk and not sort through any fire debris – Know the risks. Stay safe.
FEMA Assistance
FEMA has already approved over $55.7 million dollars in housing and other types of individual assistance with over 124,000 individuals already registered for FEMA assistance. The Deadline to Apply For Federal Assistance is March 10, 2025.
Three ways to register for FEMA Assistance:
Online at DisasterAssistance.gov. Applying online is the easiest, fastest, and most convenient way to apply. The deadline to apply and be eligible for FEMA assistance is March 10, 2025.
On the FEMA App for mobile devices
Call the FEMA helpline at (800) 621-3362: 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. (PST). Help is available in most languages.
FEMA can provide the following types of financial assistance
Special Needs Assistance Grants – $770 one-time payment to afford immediate needs like food, water, hygiene, and transportation.
FEMA Individual Assistance For Housing – Homeowners can receive FEMA Individual Assistance grants for home repair, replacement, and for temporary housing up to $43,600.
FEMA Individual Assistance For Other Needs – Another $43,600 is available in the form of a grant from FEMA to cover medical expenses, damage to a vehicle, household items/property, funeral expenses, moving/storage, and childcare expenses, etc.
LA Department of Water and Power Palisades Restoration
If you have been allowed to return to your home and find your power is out but your immediate neighbors’ electricity is on, please check your electrical panel. If your power is still out or the power remains out on your street or block, please contact 1-800-DIAL DWP to report the outage. It may be that LADWP crews are still inspecting the power lines that supply power to your street or block to ensure they are safe to restore. Performing the inspections and repairs enables crews to quickly and safely restore power to affected customers once Palisades Fire Unified Command lifts fire holds that are in place on certain power lines, for safety purposes. LADWP remains in close coordination with Unified Command and will continue working to restore power to customers, as clearance is received.
Do Not Drink Notice
Effective January 10, 2025, LADWP issued a Do Not Drink Notice in the zip code 90272 and the LADWP service area immediately south of the 90272 zip code and north of San Vicente Blvd. Check this interactive map to see if your area is affected and learn how it impacts your tap water.
LADWP is providing bottled drinking water to all impacted customers at these locations:
Veteran’s Barrington Park | 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM 7 days a week.The water supplied to the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs Campus is safe, and is outside the area under a DO NOT DRINK Notice.
Palisades Branch Library | 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM until further notice. Access at this location may be limited only to customers residing within a Residents Only Zone
Rustic Canyon Recreation Center | 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM until further notice.
LADWP Trailer Facility | 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM until further notice. - Access at this location may be limited only to customers residing within a Residents Only Zone
LAFD Fire Station 23 | 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM until further notice. No LADWP staff will be at this location. - Access at this location may be limited only to customers residing within a Residents Only Zone
Monitor Air Quality
Continue to monitor air quality and wear a N95 mask when ash, smoke, dust is in the air. Explore the Air Quality Map from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) for more details.
Find your local library and recreation center in Los Angeles to pick up free N95 masks.
Progress Toward Containment
Palisades Fire is 100% contained.
Eaton Fire, affecting communities outside the City of Los Angeles, is 100% contained.