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A British expat living in California described how she is ‘absolutely shaken and in shock’ at the damage caused to her home after the Los Angeles wildfires.
Lisa Ward, who has lived in the Topanga canyon for over two decades and is originally from North London, is currently on ‘fire watch’ – taking it in turns with her husband Dan and their three children – to assess the situation closely.
Having been evacuated from their home on Tuesday to an Airbnb in Hollywood, the family managed to find a dirt road to return to their property yesterday, only to discover the roof had been torn off and the property badly damaged.
‘I’m in complete shock at what has happened,’ the 59-year-old told Metro.
‘We built this house 23 years ago and there is so much damage, but I am more upset about so many of my friends’ homes that are completely and utterly destroyed.
‘They have nothing left; property after property and so many buildings have been burnt to the ground.’
This includes the Palisades Charter High School, a school that has long been a popular location for Hollywood productions, and one which two of her children are pupils of.
‘My kids were due to start school on Monday but the building has been destroyed and so many of my children’s friends have no home left. It is absolutely devastating.’
With her neighbours having evacuated the area, Lisa was able to borrow a generator off one of them, since all power is down.
‘I can currently see the palisades fire burning in Topanga State park from my bedroom window and the active fire is quite close,” she explained. ‘I’ve packed up our car again and am ready to flee as I’m concerned things may take a turn.’
As the owner of three dogs, as well as horses and chickens, Lisa has spoken of how terrifying the fire has been to the animals.
Fortunately, the horses were taken to an animal evacuation centre, and the dogs were allowed to stay with the family in the Airbnb.
‘When we evacuated we left the chickens in the pen open as I was so scared of it catching fire but fortunately the animals are all safe,” she added. As well as concerns for her friends, Lisa is devastated for all the local workers who have lost jobs.
‘Cleaners, gardeners, restaurant staff; so many people are now without work, I don’t know how they are going to cope. It feels as though we are living through a nightmare.’
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