Damage caused by LA wildfires is 'heartbreaking' says Worcester born man living out there
Danny Meigh says a property he rents is 'miraculously' still standing following the fires
Last updated 7th Feb 2025
A man originally from Worcester who now lives out in LA says seeing the impact the wildfires have had on communities where he lives is 'horrible' and 'heartbreaking'.
It's a month on since the first fire was reported, with Danny Meigh, along with his partner and one-year-old son heading to San Diego when they heard the initial evacuation warnings.
Mr Meigh moved to America from the UK back in 2015, and also rents a house in one of the badly affected areas of Altadena.
He says he's since returned to check in on the rented property which he says is 'miraculously' still standing, and it's been tough seeing the impact the fires have had there.
"It's horrible because it's such a beautiful part of Los Angeles," he said.
"When you got onto my street, the first half of it seemed ok, but as you continued to drive up it you started to see just these houses burnt to the ground.
"There was about six or seven houses on our street which had gone, and I used to go running a lot around that area and I'd run past these houses everyday, it's just heartbreaking."
The Eaton fire, which was the closest one to the area of Altadena and impacted around 14,021 acres, is now said to be fully contained according to the California department of forestry and fire protection.
29 people have been confirmed dead so far by officials, with the Palisades fire which affected 23,707 acres of land also under control.
Danny says they feel safer after hearing that news and their focus is now on the clean-up operation.
"The only big worry and concern for us now really is the pollution in the air," he said.
"A lot of old buildings and electronics burnt down so it's caused a lot of pollution, we have a one-year-old son and his health is our priority.
"We're healthy though, everyone we know is ok, it's just the devastation of the houses and the fires which is now the big thing."
The Southern California Edison (SCE) utility company, who were investigating whether its equipment may have started the Hurst fire which did not destroy any structures or result in any deaths, say it is likely their equipment did have a link to it.
"Absent additional evidence, SCE believes its equipment may be associated with the ignition of the Hurst fire," Thursday's filing said.
In a second filing, the company said it is looking into whether an idle transmission line became energised and possibly sparked the deadly Eaton fire which devastated Altadena, but maintains there is no evidence that its equipment was responsible for starting that blaze.