The View From the Palisades

"This weekend, I stood on a bluff in the Palisades where houses used to be. Los Angeles rose to my left, and the sky had the dramatic clouds we get in the winter when it rains, as it has for a few weeks. The hillsides have turned to Irish green, but the burn scar, below, is still black. Twice, when my family drove past during the holidays, our phones blared with evacuation alerts for possible mudslides and flooding."

"In the year since the fire, the Army Corps of Engineers has hauled away millions of tons of debris, in what the governor's office has called the fastest major-disaster cleanup in American history. Most lots are empty now; the city of L.A., which oversees most of the Palisades, has approved rebuilding plans for about 14 percent of the homes destroyed, according to the Los Angeles Times."

A major fire leveled many homes in the Palisades, leaving a visible black burn scar amid green hillsides and numerous empty lots. Heavy winter rains have triggered evacuation alerts and forced residents near burn areas to sandbag against potential mudslides and flooding. Roadways through the burn area show reduced speed limits and scattered rebuilding equipment, and some landmarks remain partially or wholly gone. The Army Corps of Engineers removed millions of tons of debris, while local rebuilding approvals remain limited, with the city approving plans for roughly 14 percent of destroyed homes.

Read at The Atlantic