6 Months Later: Palisades Fire survivors still deal with cleanup, insurance battles
Month 6 of rebuilding for Palisades Fire survivors
Monday marks six months since the Palisades Fire devastated Southern California.
LOS ANGELES - Now, almost six months have passed since the deadly Palisades Fire, and the cleanup process continues in Pacific Palisades and Malibu.
"[We're doing] worse than when the actual fire happened," said Jill Spivack, a homeowner. "At that point, you have a ton of support, [and] you think you'll figure it out [with your] insurance. Then, you get into the weeds. That has been really exhausting."
SkyFOX flew over Pacific Palisades on Sunday. Most of the lots have been cleared of debris, while others look almost untouched, like a six-month-old time capsule.
Spivack says her family has spent six months battling with their insurance company. So far, they haven't been able to start the permitting process.
Reflecting, rebuilding 6 months after LA wildfires
Monday marks six months since the deadly wildfires, Palisades and Eaton, devastated Southern California.
"The whole [insurance] game is to delay, deny you, and then deplete you completely where you just say forget it, I give up," said Spivack. "To me, I'm not willing to give up."
According to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, "Nearly 80% of residential properties in the City of L.A. that were destroyed by the Palisades Fire have been cleared of debris and have received final sign-off, a required step in the rebuilding process."
Roughly 6,000 buildings were considered damaged or destroyed in the Palisades Fire. With Monday marking six months since the fire, Mayor Bass says 161 building permits have been issued.
"We're ahead of the game," said Eric Ruhman, a homeowner. "That's our plan, because when you have 1,000 homes being built in the area, manpower is going to be very difficult."
Ruhman is one of the homeowners with a new home currently under construction. He says they started rebuilding about two months ago and hope to move in by Valentine's Day. He attributes their building success to a cooperative insurance with a "good architect and good builders."
"Just persevering [and] moving forward," said Ruhman. "We may be living in a construction zone for five years, but I'm okay with that."
Six months of cleaning, building, and, in some cases, fighting. Families are doing what they can to get back home.
"I have this vision of the Fourth of July parade in like three years, when hopefully a lot of us are back," said Spivack. "We're hugging everybody and we're just like, we got through this."