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Post Reports

Grief (and love) in L.A.

Post Reports

The Washington Post

Daily News, Politics, News

4.45.1K Ratings

🗓️ 13 January 2025

⏱️ 24 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today, when disaster hits home. Weather editor Paulina Firozi and Brianna Sacks, an extreme weather and disaster reporter, are Post colleagues. We'll hear how they and others are grappling with the devastation in L.A. 


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When several wildfires began ripping through parts of Los Angeles County on Jan. 7, The Post’s Brianna Sacks, an extreme weather and disaster reporter, began documenting the destruction. Then the story turned personal as her own father’s house in Pacific Palisades burned down. 

Since Tuesday, the Palisades Fire has burned over 23,000 acres. The Eaton Fire, which erupted to the northeast, has burned more than 14,000 acres, according to Cal Fire, while the Hurst Fire, burning in the north, has spread to over 700 acres.

At least 24 people have been killed in the fires.

Today on “Post Reports,” Brianna speaks with weather editor Paulina Firozi, also from Los Angeles, about the wildfires and what it has meant to see their childhood neighborhoods erased. We also hear from other Angelenos about how they are grappling with loss — and finding hope. 

Today’s show was produced by Sabby Robinson with help from Rennie Svirnovskiy. It was mixed by Sam Bair and edited by Monica Campbell and Renita Jablonski. Thanks also to Zach Goldfarb, Juliet Eilperin, Maggie Penman and Allison Michaels.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Transcript

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0:00.0

All right. So, Dad, can you tell me your name?

0:10.0

Lee Sachs.

0:11.6

And how are you doing at this very moment?

0:16.8

Emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausted.

0:20.8

Yeah.

0:21.2

Having lost everything in the fire.

0:23.3

When I moved to Pacific Palisades, I thought I was safe.

0:26.7

Yeah.

0:27.5

Because there are no fires in Pacific Palisades, but this fire was devastating and beyond anybody's control.

0:36.1

Yeah.

0:37.5

What are you thinking about that was in the house?

0:42.6

You know, I lost some very irreplaceable artifacts.

0:48.5

My father had a prayer shawl, which was over 100 years old.

0:54.0

Oh, my God. His to, which was over 100 years old. Oh my God.

0:55.0

His tephilin was over 100 years old.

0:59.0

My mother's engagement ring, which was close to 100 years old,

1:04.0

just irreplaceable.

1:05.0

And what you do is leave with really clothes on your back,

1:10.0

making sure that my dog was safe, and then we had

1:14.5

just some clothes to change into. And by the way, I didn't think the house was going to burn.

1:20.4

I didn't either. And I thank you for alerting me to the fact that the winds had shifted,

1:27.2

and then it was time to leave.

...

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