Honestly, walking through Pacific Palisades right now feels like being on a movie set after the cameras stopped rolling. It is January 15, 2026. Exactly one year since the smoke finally began to thin out from the most devastating week in Los Angeles history.
But if you’re asking how did the fire start in la today, you aren’t just looking for a history lesson. You’re looking at the smoke currently drifting over the 101 or the alerts hitting your phone about the Riverside activity and the "Major Emergency" calls in North Hills and Winnetka.
Fire season in LA doesn't have an "off" switch anymore. It’s a year-round reality.
The "Zombie Fire" that Burned the Palisades
The biggest question people have today—usually while looking at the scorched hillsides that are only just now starting to show patches of green—is whether the 2025 disaster was an accident.
It wasn't.
Federal prosecutors are currently preparing for the April 21, 2026, trial of Jonathan Rinderknecht. He’s the 29-year-old former Uber driver accused of starting what experts call a "zombie fire."
Here is the sequence of events that most people get mixed up:
- New Year's Eve 2024: Rinderknecht allegedly drops off a passenger, walks up a trail, and uses a barbecue lighter to start a small 8-acre blaze known as the Lachman Fire.
- The "Extinguished" Myth: Firefighters thought they put it out. They didn't.
- The Re-ignition: On January 7, 2025, 100mph Santa Ana winds whipped those underground embers back to life.
- The Explosion: That "dead" fire turned into the Palisades Fire, which killed 12 people and wiped out 7,000 structures.
The term "zombie fire" sounds like clickbait, but it’s a real scientific thing. Embers can smolder in root systems for days. When the wind hits just right, they wake up.
Today's Reality: Structure Fires and Riverside
If you’re seeing smoke on the horizon right now, it’s likely not a forest fire.
Just yesterday, January 14, 2026, a 25-acre brush fire broke out in Riverside County. It’s currently at 0% containment as of this morning. Meanwhile, the LAFD has been playing whack-a-mole with major commercial fires.
On Tuesday night, over 100 firefighters had to rush to North Hills to stop a vacant commercial building from burning down an entire apartment complex. A similar "Major Emergency" hit Winnetka just hours earlier.
Why is this happening today?
Basically, we are in a "whiplash" weather pattern. We had some rain in early January, which let everyone breathe a sigh of relief, but the vegetation dries out in 48 hours when the sun comes out. Even though the "Palisades Fire" anniversary has passed, the conditions that caused it—heavy fuel loads and human error—haven't gone anywhere.
✨ Don't miss: Who is the Man in the Orange Shirt? The Viral Mystery Behind the 1989 Tiananmen Square Video
What the Experts Say About the Risks
Aya Gruber, a law professor at USC, has been vocal about the legal battle surrounding the LA fires. She points out that while Rinderknecht is the one in the handcuffs, there's a huge debate about the LAFD's role.
Reports leaked to the Los Angeles Times recently showed that the department's "after-action" report was watered down seven times before being released. Firefighters on the ground actually texted their superiors saying they saw "visible signs of smoldering" before being ordered to leave the Lachman site.
So, how did it start? A lighter. But why did it finish the way it did? That was a failure of protocol.
Why Your Neighborhood Is Still at Risk
If you live in the "Wildland-Urban Interface" (basically anywhere near a hill), the danger today comes from three specific things:
- Decommissioned Power Lines: The Eaton Fire, which burned alongside the Palisades fire last year, was likely caused by Southern California Edison re-energizing old lines during high winds.
- Uncleared Brush: Even after the tragedy, many homeowners haven't cleared the required 100 feet of defensible space.
- Water Pressure Issues: During the height of a fire, so many people turn on their sprinklers that the hydrants run dry. This happened in 20 percent of the Palisades area last year.
What You Can Do Right Now
You can't control an arsonist with a lighter or a utility company with bad wiring. You can control your own plot of land.
Clear your gutters. Seriously. Most homes don't burn because a wall of fire hits them; they burn because a single ember lands in a pile of dry leaves on the roof.
Update your "Go Bag." If the alerts today turn into evacuation orders, you won't have time to look for your birth certificate or your dog's medication.
Monitor the "Red Flag" warnings. The National Weather Service is predicting "above-normal" fire potential for Southern California through the rest of this month. Just because it's January doesn't mean it's safe.
Stay vigilant, keep your phone charged, and pay attention to the wind. In Los Angeles, the wind is usually the first sign of trouble.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Check the LAFD Alert Map: Visit the official LAFD "Alerts" page to see if the smoke near you is a contained structure fire or an active brush fire.
- Review Your Insurance: Ensure your policy covers "Replacement Cost" rather than "Actual Cash Value," as rebuilding costs in LA have spiked by 30% since last year's disasters.
- Download Watch Duty: This app provides real-time updates from citizen reporters and official scanners, often faster than local news.