Dermot and Anne Tuohy, an Irish couple, found themselves hastily escaping their Los Angeles residence as the Palisades Fire wreaked havoc, leaving their neighborhood in smoldering ruins.
They consider themselves fortunate—“the lucky ones,” as they put it.
“We call Pacific Palisades home, which is split into two sections: the ‘village’ and the Highlands. Thankfully, we’re in the Highlands, though it suffered some damage; the village, however, is a total loss,” Mr. Tuohy shared during an interview with RTÉ News, his expression a mix of relief and sorrow.
“Most of our pals reside in the village area, and their homes are gone. Our church? Also gone. Every shop, bank, and even schools have turned to ash,” lamented Ms. Tuohy, shaking her head as she tried to make sense of it all.
They recounted the harrowing moments they spent trying to escape on that fateful Tuesday when the fire erupted at 10:30 in the morning.
“The first three hours were the scariest,” Mr. Tuohy recalled. “We wanted to get out in both our cars, but found ourselves halted at the canyon bottom on Palisades Drive. It was literally on fire! We had to pull a U-turn quickly.”
With adrenaline pumping, they turned back to their home, only to receive a police escort an hour later, a grim reminder that safety was not guaranteed.
The wildfire’s containment lingered at a mere 11%, causing Mr. Tuohy to express ongoing concern, saying it kept him “on edge.”
Temporarily homeless, they are now bunking with their son Mark in Mar Vista, close to the breezy shores of Venice Beach.
“Pacific Palisades is a small town of about 23,000 people, not too different from Sligo,” Mr. Tuohy explained. “We have around eight different churches, so you know the sense of community here runs deep.”
Despite the destruction, he holds onto hope for their town’s revival, buoyed by promises of federal assistance, although he’s realistic about the time it would take—“years at least,” he mused.
However, the fire has scattered the tight-knit communities, and as Mr. Tuohy pointed out, “It’s going to be a hefty task to reunite everyone.”
Meanwhile, with the blame-game flaring up over the response to the disaster, Ms. Tuohy felt inclined to back the local authorities. “Sure, there may not have been a small army of officials at the end of Palisades Drive directing traffic away from danger. But they hustled as best as they could,” she explained, with a flicker of determination in her eyes.
“Everything unfolded so quickly. Winds were whipping at 50 to 70 mph! The post-catastrophe finger-pointing is typical, but we’re not throwing blame around. Everyone did what they could.”
Mr. Tuohy, once the West Coast Director of IDA Ireland in the USA, echoed this sentiment.
They were quick to note that a robust Irish community thrives in L.A., with over 270 folks linked in a social media group, many of whom have also felt the brunt of the wildfires. They describe that shared connection as a lifeline, a bond forged through trials that wouldn’t easily be snuffed out.
Though the ashes settle around them, hope flickers like a candle in the wind, illuminating the path to recovery.
Report By Axadle
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
