LA wildfires devastate Altadena, Freeport legionnaire and former sheriff shares firsthand insights

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Areas in Los Angeles have been ravaged by some of the worst wildfires in the city’s history since Jan. 7, believed to be a result of factors such as ongoing drought conditions, and powerful Santa Ana winds sweeping down from desert areas into Southern California.

The fires have killed at least 24 people, forced nearly 180,000 to evacuate, and destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 structures, and still continue to rage on as strong winds continue to engorge the flames.

The most destructive of these wildfires have been the Palisades Fire, which continues to rage through the Pacific Palisades and the Eaton Fire in the neighborhood of Altadena.

Together the two fires alone have devastated 59 square miles, constituting an area more than double the size of the island of Manhattan.

David Cockerel, adjutant and past commander of the Freeport American Legion, formerly lived in Altadena, working as an LA county deputy sheriff, from 1986 to 2000 after having left the marine corp, and — like many in his former neighborhood — is not a stranger to loss of residence, as he lost his Lynbrook home in 2017 due to severe flooding.

The home he used to live in in Altadena has now also burned down, as have the homes of many of his old neighbors.

The Herald spoke with Cockerel to gain his perspective regarding the razing of Altadena and regarding the LA fires more broadly.

Interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity

Q: Can you share your initial reaction when you heard about the recent fires in LA?

David Cockerel: I was heartbroken and upset because I knew many people who live there and still live there now, and I’ve known people like my friend Benny, he lived there for almost 50 years in Altadena, and he lost everything, and most of the businesses along Lake Avenue are gone, and it’s awful.

And there is a County Fire Department right there in Altadena, but they don’t have enough firemen, firefighters, although they have the equipment to deal with that area, that area that includes Eaton Canyon… where I lived, I was only about two miles from Jet Propulsion Laboratory which was above us in the hills, and they were fighting to save (the laboratory), so it was a very horrible fire.

Q: What was the emotional impact of seeing a place you used to live ablaze?

Cockerel: It was hard to deal with because I visited, I always visited the area. When I was in California, my wife is interred at Mountain View Cemetery, which is in Altadena, which is right in the prior area… when I visited I’d ride through the old neighborhood, checking on a few friends, and I’d drive by my old house.

Q: What are you hearing from people who are still in the old neighborhood? How are they coping?

Cockerel: Not well. They’re scattered, scattered all over LA, scattered in hotels and motels, from Monrovia all the way to Long Beach, and some of them are as far North as Kern County… because they have absolutely nowhere to live, they can’t get back to their because the areas are basically still cordoned off and they’re still under a fire threat.

Q: So the fire’s still spreading?

Cockerel: Oh yeah, on the news they make it sound like they’re putting it out, but the last time I’ve heard the Eaton Canyon fire was only 20% contained. It’s still burning 80%.

Q: Have any of (your friends) been in touch with their various insurance agencies, do they feel optimistic about getting paid out?

Cockerel: No, they’re having a very hard time, although the libraries are making their computers available so that people can go and file claims, but the lines are long and people are having difficulty, and also, a lot of insurance companies have actually, even on the day of the fire, canceled policies.

A lot of people are basically traumatized, (my friend Benny and his family who live in Altadena) are absolutely in shock and trauma is going to get worse… (another problem is that) the mortgage companies are still requiring that they pay mortgage on a house that no longer exists.

Q: How is that possible?

Cockerel: It doesn’t make sense, but they have to. Because even though there’s no house on the property the mortgage company can seize the land.

Q: How are insurance companies cancelling policies? Isn’t this sort of eventuality why people pay insurance in the first place?

Cockerel: California has a problem recently with many insurance companies, particularly State Farm canceling policies on properties over the over the last five years… they saw the properties as risky.

Q: And they could do that even the day of the fire?

Cockerel: That’s something that’s going to have to either be litigated or the governor or the state is going to have to do something, or the federal government is going to have to step in.

Q: Based on your experience as deputy sheriff in Los Angeles County, what insights can you offer about the challenges that first responders and firefighters face during such disasters?

Cockerel: There’s two challenges. The challenges are dealing with the public who lost their homes that can’t go back; the second challenge is with the fire itself. Deputies actually back up the fire department when they’re fighting fires if the firefighters need back up, as far as rolling out hoses and other acts that they can help with.

Also deputies have to deal with the fact that along with dealing with civilians, dealing with the fire, they have to deal with their own stress. They’re under stress because now they’re on a 12 on, 12 off, work schedule… and you know a lot of deputies that live in Altadena, their own homes may be gone. Their own families may be in need, but they still have to go to work.

Q: Are you aware of any Nassau County based group initiatives to support the people of Altadena?

Cockerel: Not yet. Everybody’s saying ‘donate to the Red Cross,’ and don’t get me wrong the Red Cross does good work, but the dollar you donate to the Red Cross, only about 50 or 60 cents gets actually allocated to helping those in need… a lot of the money that people donate to them are not going to go to the people that need it. You need to shop around, or people need to learn to shop for organizations and especially nonprofits that are legitimate that will give 100% of what they can to people in need.

A lot of people are are under the impression that everybody that lives up in the mountains or in California is rich. No. People who live in Pacific Palisades, yes, they have a higher income. But people who live in Eaton Valley, Altadena, and Pasadena specifically, are working class people… a lot of them are totally in need. Some of them only have the clothes on their back.

They don’t have anything, they don’t have any toiletries, they have nowhere to go to clean or shower, and all the local hotels are totally packed.

Q: Do you have an opinion about the fire department’s/the government’s response to the fires?

Cockerel: Well, it’s just my opinion, but their response is the best they could possibly do. The thing is the fire is so huge, so spread out. This is a catastrophe on an almost biblical level. And it almost immediately drained the resources of LA County and LA City. And the fire is still going on.

So the need for firefighters that are coming from Mexico, from Canada, as well as states like Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and other places throughout the United States, is still critical. This isn’t going to be over for a while, until it’s totally out.

As long as there’s as little as 10% is still burning, if the winds from the canyons comes in and blows better than 30 miles an hour, the fire can kick up anywhere else there’s dry vegetation, and there’s dry vegetation all up on the hills and some of the valleys in Southern California, and this could spread beyond Los Angeles, and can go the other way, and it can end up in Riverside County as well.

For those wishing to donate to veterans affected by the wildfires, visit https://tinyurl.com/35jjxehk