Pacific Palisades is a place where the mountains basically run straight into the ocean, creating this incredible, rugged beauty that everyone wants a piece of. But that same geography makes it a nightmare for fire crews. When the smoke starts billowing out of those steep canyons, the question on everyone's mind is always the same: how did this start? Honestly, the answer to what caused the fire in Pacific Palisades usually involves a mix of human error, aging infrastructure, and a landscape that is practically begging to burn.
It's scary.
If you’ve ever stood on a ridge in Topanga or the Highlands, you know the wind doesn’t just blow; it whistles through the draws like a vacuum. It’s a perfect storm.
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The 2021 Arson Case and the Human Element
Most people, when they think about the most recent major scare, are remembering the 2021 Palisades Fire. That one was a mess. It burned over 1,300 acres and forced huge evacuations near Topanga Canyon Boulevard. It wasn't a downed power line or a lightning strike.
The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) and the Arson Counterterrorism Section eventually tracked down a suspect. This wasn't a case of a campfire getting out of hand. It was intentional. They arrested a man named Dominic George, who was later charged with felony arson.
Finding him was like a scene out of a movie.
Helicopters were circling, using infrared to track heat signatures in the dense brush because the terrain was too steep for ground crews to navigate safely in the dark. Arson is a recurring nightmare for this part of Los Angeles. When you have high-value real estate pressed right up against dry, unmanaged fuel loads, one person with a lighter can cause hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. It’s a sobering reality that differs from the natural "lightning strike" narrative we often see in the Sierras.
Why the Topography Makes Everything Worse
The dirt matters. The slope matters more.
Pacific Palisades is defined by its "V-shaped" canyons. When a fire starts at the bottom of a canyon, it moves uphill faster than most people can run. It’s basic physics—heat rises, pre-heating the brush above it until the entire hillside flashes over in a matter of seconds.
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During the 2021 event, the fire was burning in areas that hadn't seen a significant burn in over 50 years. Imagine five decades of dead leaves, fallen branches, and dried-out chamise just sitting there. It's essentially a giant pile of kindling.
Weather plays the biggest supporting role here. We talk about the Santa Ana winds a lot in Southern California, but even on a "normal" day, the onshore breezes can push flames deep into residential pockets. In the 2019 Palisades Fire—which broke out near Vista Pascual—the cause was determined to be "undetermined" but suspected to be related to human activity in a nearby encampment. This highlights a growing tension in the Santa Monica Mountains: the intersection of the homelessness crisis and fire safety.
Old Wires and High Winds: The Utility Factor
We can't talk about what caused the fire in Pacific Palisades without looking at the grid.
Southern California Edison (SCE) and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) have a massive responsibility here. In many historic fires across the state, like the Woolsey Fire or the Camp Fire, it was a "slapping" of power lines or a failed transformer that sent sparks into the grass.
In the Palisades, many power lines are still above ground.
When the wind hits 60 mph, those lines dance. If a branch hits a line, or if the hardware is old enough to snap, you get an immediate ignition. While the 2021 fire was arson, other smaller brush fires in the area have been traced back to equipment failure. The city has been pushing to "underground" these lines, but it’s a slow, incredibly expensive process that involves digging into unstable coastal hillsides.
The Myth of Natural Causes
You’ll hear people ask if it was lightning.
Statistically? Probably not.
In coastal Los Angeles, lightning-induced fires are incredibly rare compared to the interior deserts or the high mountains. Almost every single fire in the Santa Monica Mountains is started by humans. Whether it’s a discarded cigarette, a catalytic converter on a car parked over dry grass, or someone using a metal-blade weed whacker on a hot afternoon, we are usually the problem.
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There's a specific kind of plant in the Palisades called Chaparral. It’s fascinating because it actually needs fire to reproduce, but not at the frequency we are seeing now. Because humans are starting fires every 2 to 5 years instead of every 30 to 50 years, the ecosystem is shifting. The native plants are being replaced by invasive "flashy fuels" like mustard seed and annual grasses. These dry out faster and burn easier. It’s a vicious cycle.
Lessons from the Getty and Woolsey Fires
To understand the risk in the Palisades, you have to look at its neighbors. The 2017 Skirball Fire was caused by a cooking fire at an encampment. The Getty Fire in 2019 was caused by a tree limb falling onto a power line.
These aren't just "accidents." They are the results of a specific environment where urban life overlaps with a wildland interface. In the Palisades, the "What" is often a spark, but the "Why" it becomes a disaster is the lack of defensible space.
Many homeowners in the area have been flagged by the LAFD for not clearing brush. If you have "ornamental" palm trees or highly flammable eucalyptus right next to your deck, you’re basically building a bridge for the fire to enter your home. The fire doesn't care if the house is worth $10 million or $10,000. It follows the fuel.
How Investigators Actually Find the Source
It’s painstaking work.
Investigators use a method called "origin and cause" determination. They look for the "V" pattern in the char. Fire spreads outward and upward, leaving a trail that points back to the ignition point like an arrow.
- Micro-analysis: They look at "protection" marks on rocks or grass stems. One side will be charred, the other won't. This tells them the direction of the fire.
- Magnetometers: They use these to find tiny fragments of metal if they suspect a power line or a vehicle part caused the spark.
- Surveillance: In a place like Pacific Palisades, there are cameras everywhere. Ring doorbells and Nest cams have become the most valuable tools for fire investigators to see exactly when and where the first plume of smoke appeared.
In the case of the 2021 arson, witness reports and private security footage were instrumental. Someone saw something that didn't look right, and in a tight-knit canyon community, that’s often how these cases are solved.
Taking Action: What Residents Can Actually Do
If you live in the area or are worried about the next big one, "awareness" isn't enough. You need a plan that goes beyond just packing a bag.
First, look at your "Home Ignition Zone." The first five feet around your house should be "hardscaped"—meaning no mulch, no woody bushes, and certainly no firewood piles. If a stray ember lands in a pile of dry mulch against your siding, the house is gone before the fire trucks even arrive.
Second, pay attention to the "Red Flag" days. These aren't just suggestions. When the humidity drops below 10%, the air is literally thirsty. It will suck the moisture out of every leaf and branch until they are ready to explode. Avoid using any outdoor power tools during these windows.
Lastly, support the efforts to underground utilities. It’s an eyesore and a hazard. While it’s a massive infrastructure project, it’s one of the few ways to permanently remove a major ignition source from the landscape.
The cause of the fire in Pacific Palisades is rarely a mystery for long, but preventing the next one requires a shift in how we live in these canyons. We have to stop treating the forest like a backyard and start treating it like the volatile, living ecosystem it actually is.
Stay vigilant. Clear your brush. Have your evacuation route mapped out—and then have a backup route for when the first one is choked with traffic.
Next Steps for Fire Preparedness:
- Request a Brush Clearance Inspection: Contact your local LAFD station to ensure your property meets the current Los Angeles Municipal Code requirements for defensible space.
- Hardscape the 0-5 Foot Zone: Replace wood mulch with gravel or river rock immediately adjacent to your home's foundation to prevent ember ignitions.
- Install Ember-Resistant Vents: Retrofit your attic and crawlspace vents with fine metal mesh (1/8 inch or smaller) to stop wind-driven embers from entering your home's interior.