Pacific Palisades resident who saved his home during deadly wildfire returns home 1 year later

CBS LA has stayed in touch with several survivors who have spent the last year recovering from the devastating Palisades Fire that erupted on Jan. 7, 2025.

CBS LA anchor Pat Harvey met Minds of the Pacific Palisades a year ago and shared the heroic fight to save his home.

"It's been a journey, but I've got nothing but gratitude right now," Minds said.

Last January, Minds stayed behind as his wife and son evacuated the blaze. Together with a stranger who put his life on the line to help, Minds was able to extinguish spot fires, and his neighbor did the same.

The result: Minds' home and several others on his side of the street were saved. Sadly, all of the homes across the street burned down.

Clouds of smoke and ash caused by the fire blanketed homes still standing. When Minds and his wife returned to the house two weeks after the fire, they found black soot settled in the pool and embedded in every belonging of every single room of the house.

"When they tested the ash and soot, they found high concentrations of lead," Minds said.

Decontaminating the home involved packing upwards of 200 boxes and sending them to a storage facility in Camarillo. From there, the walls had to be opened, the insulation had to be changed out and every horizontal surface had to be decontaminated or replaced. Unlike many homeowners dealing with smoke damage, Minds had luck with his insurance company.

Minds used his settlement not only to decontaminate but also to harden his home. He has a new fire-resistant roof that's been coated with fire-resistant paint, more succulents that store water in their leaves and more boulders in his landscaping.

Even though Minds has been able to make the changes to his home, he knows the neighborhood he's returning to won't be the same.

"I think most of the neighbors have decided to sell," Minds said. "Some were elderly in their 80s and just didn't have a construction project in them; others had small kids they didn't want to waste any time with a community to rebuild itself."

The community hardware store, Anawalt Palisades, re-opened several months ago, but the local Starbucks and Bank of America remain in ruins.

"It's so quiet at night. You can drive down Sunset Boulevard at 9 p.m. and not see another car," Minds said.

Minds knows the rebuilding that will surround him over the next several years will kick up dust and disruption, but there's still no place else he'd rather be.

"I'm really hopeful. I'm just so ready to be back in this house," Minds said.