The burn is part of an effort to determine the wildfire’s point of origin and the mechanisms
Residents near Pacific Palisades have been warned to expect smoke and flames this week as federal investigators carry out a controlled burn aimed at uncovering the origins of the devastating January wildfire that destroyed thousands of homes and killed a dozen people.
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced that the burn will take place along the Temescal Ridge Trail between Skull Rock and Green Peak from the evening of Tuesday, April 29, through Thursday, May 1, according to ABC7 News. The Los Angeles Fire Department will be on-site throughout the operation to ensure public safety and protect the environment, and residents are urged to avoid the area.
ATF officials said the controlled burn is part of an effort to determine the wildfire’s point of origin and the mechanisms by which it spread so rapidly during the windstorm. Investigators have not ruled out arson, and the fire remains under investigation. Nicole Lozano, acting spokesperson for the ATF’s Los Angeles field office, told LA Magazine that a certified fire investigator is leading a national team working to produce a detailed origin and cause report.
According to the Los Angeles Times, investigators are examining whether fireworks ignited a smaller fire near the same trail on New Year’s Day that may have continued to smolder and reignited a week later. There are no power poles near the suspected origin, suggesting human activity is a likely cause, investigators told the *Times*.
Weeks after the fire, the FBI issued a BOLO (Be On The Lookout) for Josephine Sunshine Overaker, a fugitive associated with the domestic arson group “The Family.” Around the same time, a couple from Oregon linked to the same movement were arrested in the Palisades after being found operating a fake fire truck from a non-existent town called Roaring River.
