Officials from the current and past presidential administration surveyed the ravaged Palisades and Eaton fire burn areas on Thursday, Feb. 6.
In two separate tours, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass accompanied U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Lee Zeldin, and L.A. County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath walked the Palisades area with former Vice President Kamala Harris. And Zeldin would also take in the devastation of the Eaton fire in the Altadena and Pasadena areas.
The split-screen moment had a common theme – recovery, starting with debris-removal operations that Zeldin’s agency has been running in both fire footprints, where collectively the fires killed 29, destroyed more than 16,000 structures and consumed nearly 40,000 acres.
Harris joined Horvath, who represents District 3, an area that includes the Palisades and Malibu, in a walking tour of the burn area of the Palisades fire, followed by a visit to a Red Cross emergency shelter in Westwood.
Many have speculated that Harris, a native Californian with a history in state politics that includes a tenure as attorney general and as U.S. senator, may be eyeing entering the 2026 gubernatorial race.
But standing outside the shelter, she spoke about the need for resiliency to extreme weather situations and her appreciation for Los Angeles leaders, firefighters and the American Red Cross, Harris said it was too soon for her to make such a move.
“I have been home for two weeks and three days,” she said. “My plans are to be in touch with my community, to be in touch with the leaders and figure out what I can do to support them, and most importantly, to lift up the folks who are surviving this extraordinary crisis and do what I can do to offer any assistance, even if it is a kind word along the way.”
Harris, who resides in nearby Brentwood, said she is visiting fire areas because it is the right thing to do.
“I am here and would be here regardless of the office I hold, because it is the right thing to do, which is to show up in your community and thank the folks who are on the ground, doing the hard work,” Harris said. “And I would encourage everyone, when you run into a Red Cross volunteer, when you run into a firefighter, when you run into a local elected leader, thank them.”
This is Harris’ second visit to a Los Angeles burn area: She visited Altadena on Jan. 20, right after leaving office in Washington, D.C., to make way for the incoming Trump administration. She met with firefighters and community members affected by the Eaton fire.
Horvath described Los Angeles and California as “lucky to have Harris’ leadership at (their) back.”
Harris voiced gratitude for the American Red Cross, not only for work in fire-weary L.A., but other disaster zones, including North Carolina, after the state was ravaged by Hurricane Helene.
“I do believe that in these moments of crisis, the heroes and the angels among us are revealed. When I think about the work that is happening because of the leaders who are here and the folks who work with them, it truly is the best of who we are as a country… .” Harris said.
Horvath and Harris were not the only officials putting boots on the ground to survey wildfire damage on Thursday. Bass, joined by Zeldin and other state officials, toured the Palisades separately to assess the progress on debris removal and recovery thus far.
The EPA has been working on the first phase of the debris removal process, removing household hazardous waste such as batteries, drain openers and motor oil, and bringing it to staging sites to separate and transport to long term storage.
“I wish we were meeting under different circumstances, but I’m pleased to be visiting with amazing EPA personnel on the ground who are working hard with local residents and government to identify and remove hazardous materials following the deadly, recent wildfires,” Zeldin wrote on X.
While the tour was closed to the media, Zeldin said he was moved by what he saw.
“It’s impossible to fathom,” Zeldin told KNX News after viewing the Eaton Fire area. “No American has ever seen anything like this ever before, and hopefully no American will ever have to see something like this ever again.”
He said his agency “has been proudly doing everything in our power” to complete the Phase 1 clearance of hazardous materials from the burn zones, with the agency trying to meet a goal of finishing the work in 30 days.
“We set a 30-day goal. We’re doing everything we can to possibly meet it.”
Once the Phase 1 hazardous materials work is finished on individual properties, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will expand its Phase 2 clearance of fire debris from properties, clearing the way for residents and businesses to begin rebuilding efforts.
The corps officially began Phase 2 work earlier this work, starting with five Pasadena Unified School District campuses destroyed or damaged in the Eaton Fire.
EPA officials said Wednesday there were more than 1,000 people working on the hazardous waste removal effort, but only about 5% of affected properties had been cleared so far.
But the start of Phase 2 work marked a major advancement in the clearance work, which is expected to take at least a year to fully complete.
“Beginning Phase 2 means we’re making tangible progress toward recovery,” Col. Eric Swenson, the Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles Wildfires Recovery Field Office commander, said in a statement Tuesday. “Our teams are working with urgency and care to remove hazardous debris while ensuring the safety of the community, workers and the environment.”
Phase 2 involves clearing fire-damaged properties of hazardous ash and debris.
Corps of Engineers officials said the Phase 2 operations will expand in the coming weeks to include residential properties destroyed by the Eaton and Palisades fires.
Horvath confirmed that she also met with Zeldin on Thursday. Horvath said she emphasized to the EPA that not only do residents want to return to their homes and communities, but that they want to go back to healthy and safe communities.
She said she also conveyed the sense of urgency to rebuild.
Horvath held a virtual town hall on debris removal on Wednesday, where she said she and her constituents will hold the EPA accountable for the cleanup process.
Staging sites that have been established at the Will Rogers State Beach parking lot and near Topanga Creek , and also in the Azusa area, and also have drawn criticism from residents with environmental impact concerns.
“We are all laser-focused on holding you to this … We want to make sure that when you leave, these are spaces we can return to … We need to know that when it’s gone, it’s gone for good,” she said to an EPA representative at the town hall.
Staff writer Christina Merino and freelancer Jarret Liotta contributed to this report. City News Service also contributed.