'The Wirecutter Show': The True Cost of Recovering from the L.A. Wildfires, Part 1

What It Covers

Part one of a three-part series following two Wirecutter writers who lost or damaged their Altadena homes in the January 2025 Los Angeles Eaton Fire, examining emergency preparedness and disaster recovery lessons.

Key Questions Answered

• •Community Communication Networks: Create neighborhood text chains or WhatsApp groups before disasters strike. Mike's dog park group became his lifeline when official evacuation alerts failed to reach West Altadena residents for seven hours after the fire started.
• •Emergency Service Limitations: Do not wait for official instructions during fast-moving disasters. Mike's neighborhood received no evacuation alerts despite being in the fire's path, forcing residents to self-organize and make independent survival decisions without uniformed crew guidance.
• •Neighbor Knowledge Investment: Build relationships with immediate neighbors who possess different skills and information sources. During communication blackouts, local connections provide critical real-time updates that official channels cannot deliver, potentially saving lives in emergencies.
• •Evacuation Trigger Planning: Establish personal evacuation criteria independent of official orders. Gregory left based on extreme Santa Ana wind forecasts from local meteorologist Edgar MacGregor, not fire warnings, avoiding potential road blockages on the single access road to his neighborhood.