Man from the Midlands living in Los Angeles details the 'harrowing' devastation of the wildfires

Since the beginning of the year, the city and surrounding areas of Los Angeles have been choked with smoke and fire, leaving nothing but ash and devastation.

The wildfire, which began in the Palisades on 7 January, engulfed homes, businesses, and the natural area spurred by winds at speeds of almost 100 miles per hour.

The driving factor of this disaster is largely attributed to the arid and strong Santa Ana winds that are common in California during the winter months.

The fire took advantage of these winds and quickly covered 17,234 acres by 9 January.

Over 200,000 people were put under evacuation orders, and many have yet to return home. Many do not know if there is anything to return to.

Some were lucky however and were located just out of the reach of the inferno that raged just minutes down the road. Watching in horror as the place they called home burned.

Kevin Madigan is one of these lucky few. He is originally from Longford and has lived in Los Angeles for over twenty years. 

He lives a few miles from the fire and has feared its arrival on his doorstep for the past two weeks.

“The Palisades fire which is to the south of us, was, at its closest only about five or six miles away, which was too close to comfort,” he explained.

“There was a smaller one called the Kenneth Fire that was just a little bit more to the west of us and was about two miles away.

“I could look  over towards Palisades and see the smoke,” he recalled, “You could see all the aircraft working, the firefighting aircraft, and helicopters”

He spoke of the mood in LA at the moment and how people are dealing with the aftermath of losing everything they once held dear.

“It depends on where you are, it’s kind of surreal for this area because although we were next in line for evacuation, due to the direction of the wind we had clear skies and sunshine.

“Knowing what was just over the horizon still didn't change much here.”

“It’s devastating for the communities in the Palisades today and over in Pasadena, where people have lost everything.

“They’re just getting back to, what they’re calling it, repopulation, people are being able to see if their homes are still standing.

“It’s a harrowing time,” he explains, “People are just finding out in some cases if they have something to go back to.”

While Kevin was lucky he knows many of his friends were not.

One of his friends was fortunate to have his house left standing, but it is uninhabitable as everything surrounding it is burned and the water is toxic.

Another of his friends has not yet had the chance to return home and has yet to see the extent of the damage.

“She doesn’t think she’ll get back until 25 January.

“She’s in an older house but she’s lucky that the fire came and the house withstood it, but the clean-up crew that she’s had to get through her insurance can’t get up there until then. 

“There is a lot of toxic ash and anything else that has built up needs to be removed before they can even go in, but the house is still there,” he said.

While the fires seem to be ebbing the aftermath will have a massive impact on the people of LA.

It was reported that thousands of people had their insurance cancelled just months before the fire took place.

Many lost everything, not just financially but sentimentally, while comfort can be found in reimbursement from their insurance policies they will not get it.

From the images and videos coming from the fires over the last two weeks, the devastation is immense. It is estimated that the cost of rebuilding the destroyed areas will cost over $50 billion.

Some things cannot be replaced, however. Many landmarks and historical sights in the city have been destroyed. Important vegetation and habitats have been wiped out.

Kevin Madigan is a prominent figure in the music industry, many of his friends and colleagues have suffered as a result of the disaster.

“One person had a beautiful music studio attached to his house, he’s a successful musician and producer and just finished the soundtrack to the Wicked movie that recently came out.

“He went to go and get his glasses prescription at 9 in the morning, then his wife called him at 11 to say everyone was evacuated, he didn't even get to go home.

“That was the last he saw of his home and his studio and all his instruments, stuff that is irreplaceable, stuff that had been collected over the years.

“It’s difficult to replace older equipment that isn't made anymore,”

However, if one good thing has emerged from the ashes of this disaster it’s community.

For Kevin, there is no shortage of Irish camaraderie, even if he is over 8000 kilometres away. He and many other Irish expats have been put in contact with one another and it is because of this they have been able to reach out to those who are struggling.

“People are posting financial support from government sources, places to go for resources for those who have an immediate need for shelter.

“There’s a lot of people on the WhatsApp chat who have said they have a spare room if someone needs it, whether they've been displaced or lost their home.

“It’s been nice to see the level of support through the Irish side of things.”

For musicians support is available there too.

“ Various suppliers are making it possible for people to replace things if they need to get back to work quickly,” explained Kevin.

The LA Cougars, Gaelic Football Club in LA has started a GoFundMe to aid the Irish community in LA that has lost a lot.

“People have lost entire homes and they’re completely displaced so it’s been great to see the amount of support people have to offer,” concluded Kevin.