Pacific Coast Highway reopened for the first time in weeks early Monday as Pacific Palisades residents continued to grapple with officials over the possibility of lifting restrictions on access to neighborhoods destroyed by fire.
PCH, which had been swept by flames and beset by debris flows, was opened between the McClure Tunnel in Santa Monica and Carbon Beach Terrace in Malibu. However, just one lane in each direction was opened, with a speed limit of 25 mph. There is no parking along the highway as repair work in the area continues, officials said.
The scenic stretch of highway had been closed since Jan. 7, when firefighters first began battling the Palisades fire. Ultimately, 23,400 acres burned and 6,800 structures — many of them homes — were destroyed. Parts of the highway reopened in Malibu on Sunday, but plans to remove all checkpoints for access to the Palisades were delayed amid pushback from residents.
Access to Palisades neighborhoods remains restricted to residents and authorized contractors who have passes, Mayor Karen Bass’ office said Monday. Residents and contractors can obtain passes at the parking structure of the Disaster Recovery Center at 10850 Pico Blvd. in Westwood. Passes are available daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The California Highway Patrol and National Guard are controlling access to the Palisades, allowing the LAPD to “increase its service citywide,” according to the mayor’s office.
“We continue to adapt in real time to this dynamic situation,” read a prepared statement Saturday. “This plan secures the Palisades and eases the strain on LAPD, whose ability to respond across L.A. has been impacted for nearly one month. My priority continues to be rebuilding the Palisades as rapidly and safely as possible.”
The confusion over checkpoints and the reopening of Pacific Coast Highway caused some tension on the Westside of Los Angeles over the weekend.
Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart said in a statement on Sunday that “uncoordinated decisions create unnecessary confusion and disruption.”
“We urge the City of Los Angeles to work collaboratively with all affected jurisdictions in the future to ensure clarity, consistency, and thoughtful communication. Our communities have a hard enough road ahead — these moments require coordination and leadership, not confusion. Malibu remains focused on recovery and ensuring our residents and businesses have the stability they need,” Stewart said.
Pacific Palisades residents have voiced concerns about members of the general public having access to the fire zone, citing issues including toxic pollution, public safety and crime.
Nearly 5,000 people signed a change.org petition last week to urge officials to maintain restricted access for devastated neighborhoods, saying that reopening too early would offer “no tangible benefit to residents and would only place an unnecessary burden on a community that has not even begun to recover.”
Meanwhile, Los Angeles County is bracing for its first atmospheric river storm of the winter — raising hopes of a definitive end to a devastating fire season.
There is a 5% chance that rainfall could trigger significant debris flows in recent burn areas, according to Andrew Rorke, a National Weather Service meteorologist.
The storm’s peak in L.A. County is expected to occur between Tuesday night and midday Wednesday. L.A. County is expected to get anywhere from one-quarter inch to an inch of rain during that storm.
A second storm — a cold frontal system — is expected to hit the area a bit harder on Thursday into Friday. Rain could fall at a moderate pace, between one-quarter inch and one-half inch per hour.
There is a small chance that the area around the Eaton fire could get enough rain to raise the risk of mudslides and debris flows, said Rose Schoenfeld, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Oxnard.
“However, with this storm, we’re mostly expecting pretty beneficial rain that’s going to be fairly light and nicely widespread, without too many pockets of enhancement,” Schoenfeld said.
Times staff writers Sonja Sharp, Clara Harter, Julia Wick and Dakota Smith contributed to this report.
