The devastating Palisades Fire caused thousands of people to lose their homes including soap opera star Eric Braeden.
Last week the actor, who plays Victor Newman in CBS’ “The Young and the Restless,” was returning home from work when he got word that the fire was raging close to his home. At first, a fire official told Braeden’s wife that the wildfire was heading west and not to worry. Moments later Braeden said he saw flames burning nearby.
“Within 20 minutes it was an inferno,” he explained.
From then, the couple frantically packed everything they could.
Days later, Braeden made an emotional return to his beloved home with Entertainment Tonight. He walked through the devastation, where just weeks before he had hosted his granddaughter, who was in town from college, for the holidays.
“I remember her and my wife sitting on the couch, talking, having a wonderful time. Talking about the fact that one day, that (the house) would be hers,” he reminisced.
Through the damage, he spotted remnants of a workout bench and an area where his son, “Den of Thieves” writer and director Christian Gudegast, wrote his scripts. The movie’s sequel, “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,” is currently a hit at the box office. Right now, Braeden is a wave of emotions as he balances excitement for his son while also reeling from tragedy.
The actor said the entire experience of losing his home has been draining.
“Primarily, when you want to go home, you say ‘wait a minute, I don’t live there anymore.’ It’s happened to be two or three time,” he said.
He wants to rebuild and was told it could take about a year and a half, but he does have worries about insurance issues.
While building a home is one thing, the Palisades itself is on a long road to recovery. In the meantime, he slammed the politicization of the wildfires and said officials “tried their damnedest.”
“So, now to point fingers at anyone is outrageous and irresponsible,” he exclaimed.
Throughout all of this, Braeden still has great pride for the city of Los Angeles and the state of California.
“We’ll rebuild the damn place,” he said while holding up a fist of hope.
