They were among the most costly wildfires in United States history, ravaging the densely populated metropolis of Los Angeles in southern California.
But almost a year after they were contained, the Eaton and Palisades fires are back in the headlines, as the administration of President Donald Trump seeks to wrest control of the rebuilding effort.
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On Wednesday, at a speech in Washington, DC, Trump indicated he would appoint Lee Zeldin, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to take over the permitting process for home construction.
“I haven’t told this to Lee Zeldin yet, but I’m going to put you in charge of getting permits. I think we’re going to override the local authorities,” Trump told the EPA chief from the stage.
But that push has reignited tensions with state and local Democrats in California, who accuse Trump of seeking to shift attention away from the lack of federal aid for recovery efforts.
The southern California fires were the first major natural disaster to confront Trump’s second term. Erupting in early January 2025, they tore through more than 38,000 acres (15,378 hectares), whipped by the dry, gusting Santa Ana winds.
At least 16,000 buildings were destroyed. The official death toll placed the number of people killed at around 31, but academics at the University of Helsinki put the number of indirect deaths closer to 440, with people succumbing to conditions related to poor air quality, delayed medical care and mental health causes.
The cost of the damage has been estimated at $65bn, with some figures putting the economic losses even higher.
Critics have argued that the rebuilding process has been frustrating and slow. But politicians disagree over the cause.
On Tuesday, Trump issued an executive order taking aim at the Democratic leaders who run California, including Governor Gavin Newsom, a likely contender for the presidency in 2028.
Accusing them of an “abject failure to rebuild” southern California, Trump announced he would be preempting state or local permitting processes. He also added that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would be investigating whether federal funds “were awarded arbitrarily, capriciously, or contrary to law”.
Trump used his public appearance on Wednesday — organised to boost his child savings account programme — to double down on his attacks.
“I went there a couple of days after the fire, met so many people on the streets. In many cases, they were fairly wealthy people, some very rich people. Some of the best houses in California burned down,” Trump told his audience.
The Republican president, whose fortune derives from his family’s real estate empire, proceeded to bemoan the slow pace of construction permitting, as well as California’s tendency to lean Democratic.
“It’s a national emergency,” Trump said. “What they’ve done to these people is horrible. It’s just horrible. And they’ll still vote Democrat. Can you believe it? After all, it’s just they get used to it.”
But Democratic leaders have fired back, questioning Trump’s motives and authority.
Previously, the two sides have clashed over Trump’s decision to send National Guard troops to southern California without Governor Newsom’s permission, with Democrats arguing that Trump’s efforts also represented an unconstitutional overreach of presidential authority.
In a statement to local media this week, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass emphasised her view that Trump had once again overstepped his bounds.
“The President has no authority over the local permitting process, but where he could actually be helpful is by providing the critical FEMA funding we have been asking for, by speeding up FEMA reimbursements, and by regulating the industries that he alone can impact,” the statement said.
Bass added that Trump could also be helpful by pushing insurance companies to compensate homeowners for their losses, as well as by encouraging banks to offer mortgage forgiveness and no-interest loans to survivors.
Under Bass’s leadership, in January 2025, the city of Los Angeles suspended requirements under the California Coastal Act and California Environmental Quality Act to help speed up reconstruction efforts.
The city also ordered an expedited permit review process that required qualifying reviews to be completed within 30 days of a submitted application.
Still, as of Wednesday, a state website monitoring reconstruction efforts showed that just 2,981 permits had been approved between Los Angeles County, the city of Los Angeles and the nearby municipalities of Malibu and Pasadena. A total of 6,811 applications had been received, according to the site.
But residents have also complained about delays in federal assistance, particularly as Trump takes efforts to dismantle FEMA and limit its payouts to disaster survivors.
Some California wildfire survivors have reported that their FEMA payments only covered a small fraction of the damage the agency estimated for their properties.
Governor Newsom, a frequent target of Trump’s, seized upon those accusations this week to issue a missive on social media that both mocked the president and criticised his lack of support.
“The Feds need to release funding not take over local permit approval speed — the main obstacle is COMMUNITIES NOT HAVING THE MONEY TO REBUILD,” Newsom’s press office wrote.
“Mr. President, please actually help us. We are begging you. Release the federal disaster aid you’re withholding that will help communities rebuild their homes, schools, parks, and infrastructure.”
Thousands of homes remain in rubble, as crews continue to address hazardous waste from lead, asbestos and other toxic materials that the fires left behind.
