An Irish couple forced to evacuate their home in Los Angeles due to the Palisades Fire mentioned that a significant portion of their community has been devastated.
Dermot and Anne Tuohy consider themselves to be among “the fortunate ones.”
“We reside in Pacific Palisades, which consists of two areas: the ‘village’ and the Highlands. We are in the ‘highlands,’ which suffered only partial destruction, while the village was entirely wiped out,” Mr. Tuohy explained to RTÉ News.
“Most of our friends live in the Village area of Pacific Palisades; their homes are gone, our church is destroyed, and every shop, bank, and school is completely burned to the ground,” Ms. Tuohy added.
The couple recounted their attempts to evacuate on Tuesday after the fire ignited at 10:30 AM.
“The scariest moment was during the initial three hours when we tried to escape in both of our cars,” Mr. Tuohy noted.
“We got halted at the bottom of the canyon on Palisades Drive because it was actually ablaze, so we couldn’t get out and had to turn back,” he said.
After they returned to their home, police arrived about an hour later to help them evacuate.
With only 11% of the wildfire contained, Mr. Tuohy expressed that it remains “a concern.”
Currently unable to go back home, the couple is staying with their son Mark in Mar Vista, near Venice Beach in Los Angeles.
Mr. Tuohy described Pacific Palisades as “a town with about 23,000 residents, comparable to the size of Sligo,” which boasts around eight different churches.
He is optimistic that the town will rebuild with assistance from promised federal funds, although he recognizes that this will “require years.”
He also mentioned that the fire has left the town’s communities “scattered.”
“Reuniting them all is going to be very challenging,” he remarked.
In the wake of growing blame over the fire response, Ms. Tuohy expressed their belief that “the authorities acted as quickly as they could given the resources available.”
“Sure, there may not have been enough officials at the end of Palisades Drive to guide us out of the fire, but they moved as swiftly as they could,” she stated.
“This unfolded rapidly, with winds ranging from 50 to 70 mph at the time, so the finger-pointing … it’s a common occurrence after a disaster; we certainly won’t blame anyone, as we feel everyone did their utmost.”
Mr. Tuohy is the former West Coast Director for IDA Ireland in the USA.
The couple noted that there is a very strong Irish community in Los Angeles, with over 270 members connected through a social media group, many of whom have been impacted by the wildfires.
