Cerro Grande & Eaton Canyon
This past Tuesday, January 7, a fire of unknown origin started in Eaton Canyon, a gateway to the Angeles National Forest at the eastern edge of my current hometown, Pasadena, CA. The fire exploded out of control, and while the damage assessment is ongoing, I am sure 10% or more of the greater Pasadena/Altadena area was destroyed, with nearly all of Altadena horribly damaged. This fire is known as the Eaton Fire.
On May 4, 2000, I was a senior at Los Alamos High School, looking forward to a promising final month of school with concerts, drama club events, and the senior prom. Also, on that day, Bandelier National Monument started a controlled burn that went horribly wrong and destroyed more than 10% of Los Alamos. This fire is known as the Cerro Grande Fire.
It's been a lot to think about over the last few days. My family and I are safe. We were evacuated around 5 a.m. on Wednesday morning and decamped to a hotel in Anaheim, CA, to avoid the smoke. Our home appears unscathed. We are so fortunate. For so many of my friends in Pasadena, the opposite is true. I keep hearing from and about more and more people who lost their homes in the fire. It is devastating.
When the Cerro Grande fire started, I was unaware of the true dangers of fires. I clearly remember starting in the high school parking lot on Friday evening, probably right before some theater event, and discussing with my friends whether the fire was dangerous. I said no. I was wrong.
Los Alamos is split into two parts, with the Los Alamos National Lab in between. I lived on the hill (Los Alamos proper) with about 11,000 people, and then another 7,000 folks lived in White Rock, a 15-20-minute drive away. Midday on May 10, 2000, Los Alamos was evacuated. We went to White Rock. I left my parent's friends' house to hang out with my friends for a while, figuring we were safe. Homes were already burning. In the middle of the night, they evacuated White Rock, too. We spent hours with 18,000 people leaving on a two-lane road down the mountain. (Through Totavi, NM, I might add.)
Eventually, we made it to a friend's home in Albuquerque, some 100 miles away. I returned to Los Alamos on May 12, 2000, to help the one and only local radio station inform people about the fire. It was a lot like what we call a blog now, just a page with more and more information in reverse order. It was the first way many people learned their houses were destroyed.
The website was set up by a business colleague and friend of mine, Ken Feller, who ran the local internet service provider. With no concept of social media at the time, the station needed someone who could manage updating a webpage with information. Ken needed a break, so I drove up from Albuquerque to take over. I stayed several nights in a very smoky office, sleeping on the floor and updating the website.
Today, we have so much more information at our fingertips. I have been able to watch my house from my cameras. We never lost power, although we have batteries if we did. Our primary internet was down for a few days, but we have a Starlink backup. I can check on everything, including air quality, in my house. Amazing apps like WatchDuty consolidate information and keep everyone informed. It has eased my mind tremendously the way technology has helped.
In 2000, I was evacuated from my house for two weeks. I don't remember what happened during all that time, although I know I slept at the radio station in Los Alamos, in Albuquerque, and at friends' houses in White Rock. In the end, we had a rescheduled prom, which was pretty great. My family's home was intact, but so many of my friends' houses were destroyed. The fire was so hot that many buildings went down in minutes (the police cars had recordings). A friend's gun safe got so hot the bullets went off from the inside.
Although I felt traumatized by the Cerro Grande fire for many years, that has decreased with time. I have never forgotten how truly unpredictable and dangerous fires are. Somehow, I still find myself living just a few miles from a national forest and in a very high-risk fire zone.
I know it is mostly luck that leads to my home being OK this time and so many others not. We are at the very start of a very long and painful road to recovery.
These times bring out the best and the worst in many. The best is how communities come together, and our government serves to save and protect us and our property. The worst is the folks who attempt to scam, loot, or gouge fire victims.
Los Alamos has recovered in the 25 years since Cerro Grande, though it was forever changed. I am hopeful that Altadena and Pasadena will also recover, but I know it will never be the same again.
I am so sorry for all of my friends and community members who lost their homes, especially those who lost their loved ones. I am so grateful to everyone who has come to help.
Folks have been asking me how they can help me. If you can, please make a monetary donation that I will match up to $5,000.
Visit https://www.totavi.com/eaton to learn more about donating.
If you are local, you can also visit https://laworks.com/2025fires to learn more about volunteering and donations.