Less than eight months after the Eaton and Palisades wildfires destroyed 16,000 buildings in Los Angeles County, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Tuesday announced it was preparing to clear wreckage from the final residential parcel that opted into the federal cleanup.
At a news conference in Pacific Palisades, U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman (D–Sherman Oaks), L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and L.A. City Councilmember Traci Park joined federal disaster agencies in commemorating the federal response to the wildfires as the fastest wildfire recovery in modern history. Federal contractors say they have cleared 2.5 million tons of fire debris from nearly 10,000 properties, finishing roughly four months earlier than the Army Corps’ January 2026 goal and well ahead of experts’ and lawmakers’ initial projections.
“What was expected to take more than two years was finished in just seven months,” Horvath said. “That speed is extraordinary, but this milestone is about more than speed. It’s about partnership and compassion and a shared commitment to walk the road of recovery with our community until the very end.”
The debris removal began in late January when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency oversaw the collection and disposal of hazardous debris, such as potentially explosive lithium-ion batteries and compressed gas canisters. In February, the Army Corps began to supervise work crews tasked with gathering toxic ash, rubble and contaminated soil from destroyed properties.
Over the the last few months, Army Corps-led contractors have worked rapidly to clear thousands of properties. However, the work has in some cases been imperfect. As The Times reported this month, hundreds of homeowners filed complaints of sloppy and inconsistent work by federal contractors hired to remove debris.
On Tuesday evening, officials gathered outside the final residential property scheduled to be cleaned by federal work crews, the site of a three-bedroom home perched on a scenic hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
The property belonged to 93-year-old Noland West, a longtime Pacific Palisades resident, who expressed his gratitude to federal workers and his commitment to rebuilding.
“We’ve got good plans. I would not want to live anywhere else,” West said. “I got away with the clothes on my back — that was it. We’ve been living in hotels ever since until we finally found an apartment. There’s nothing to describe the feeling. It was heart-wrenching. I miss my house.”
Although West’s property is the final home in the Army Corps cleanup, federal contractors are still working on a few commercial properties, in addition to Eliot Arts Magnet Academy, a public middle school in Altadena, and a collection of cabins in Millard Canyon in the U.S. Forest Service area.
Many communities affected by fires are transitioning into the rebuilding phase. Local officials have issued 600 permits in Altadena and Pacific Palisades so far.
Now, in lots where there had been only ash and wreckage several months ago, homes are springing up. It’s a dramatic transformation from the devastation in the days after the fire that Councilmember Park recalled.
“When I looked around that first morning, I wondered how on earth we were ever going to get it cleaned up?” Tracy Park said. “The work of the Army Corps helped clear the way for healing, physically and emotionally. It gave our community a foundation to start over.”
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