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Los Angeles Targets Looters; California Fire Victims Speak Out. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired January 10, 2025 - 11:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[11:30:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The extreme conditions, compounded by high winds, keeping firefighting aircraft grounded.

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): I mean, just when you have a system, but it's not dissimilar to what we have seen in other extraordinarily large-scale fires, whether it be pipe, electricity, or whether it just be the complete overwhelm of the system.

KAREN BASS (D), MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: We also know that fire hydrants are not constructed to deal with this type of massive devastation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Right now, Los Angeles officials are giving an update.

Let's listen in.

NATHAN HOCHMAN, LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Thank you, and good morning.

The district attorney's office will be considering up to now five different types of cases that will eventually be presented from law enforcement. Let's start with arson.

If it is determined that there is a manmade and intentional setting of any of the fires involved in this situation, the people who committed this arson will be arrested, they will be prosecuted, and they will be punished to the full extent to the law.

Right now, obviously, law enforcement and the firefighters are focused on containing these properties, saving lives, saving homes, but, eventually, we will get to the causes of those fires. And, in that part, the DA's office will be working with law enforcement to go after anyone who is guilty of the crime of arson.

Second types of crimes, if people are going to violate this curfew restriction and they get arrested, they will be prosecuted. Let me make -- let me back up what the sheriff has said. In order to protect the homes of people who've been ordered to leave those homes, the sheriff, the Los Angeles Police Department and local law enforcement is going to be working overtime to protect your home.

In that way, if you violate the curfew, you will be arrested and then you will be prosecuted by the district attorney's office. Third issue, looting. Looting is a despicable crime. For the people who've already been arrested, please know that this is not going to end well. You will be punished to the full extent of the law.

And I'm sending this warning message out again. If you want to take -- and go ahead and take advantage of people who have tragically suffered enormous losses in this county, the district attorney's office working with law enforcement will make sure you are arrested, you are prosecuted and you are maximally punished.

Drones. If you're thinking that it's fine to send a drone up in the area for your own amusement, or you want to get information that nobody else can get, and you do it in one of these areas for which drones are not permitted, I will repeat one more time, you will be arrested, you will be prosecuted, and you will be punished to the full extent of the law.

And the last type of crime that we will be looking at are scams, and we're already seeing them. We're seeing people being targeted in GoFundMe scams by people who are trying to entice people to give money to people who have suffered, when the people who are arranging this GoFundMe page are nothing but scammers. You must be aware of who you might or are being approached by and who you actually can go ahead and give your money to if you want to help them.

We're going to see that eventually with insurance scams. We will see it with government benefit scams. And, yes, they are going to target the people who have been tragically affected.

And you cannot allow them to do it. I would suggest that if you want Internet resources and who to give money to, go to recovery.LACounty.gov. It has a whole list of organizations that you can, if you want to, contribute to, and it does it in both English and Spanish. Also, you can go to the LAFD.gov's Web site as well.

But my message to the public is beware. These scammers look at this as an opportunity. Do not let them take advantage of you. And one more message to the scammers, you will be arrested, you will be prosecuted, and you will be punished to the maximum extent possible.

I'd like now to introduce the California insurance commissioner.

BROWN: You have been listening there to the L.A. district attorney, Nathan Hochman, giving some stern warnings there for anyone who is looting or scamming or breaking curfew. And he also talked about working with law enforcement to see if anyone might be behind these fires and the arsonists.

So, a lot going on there with that press conference.

I want to go to the ground now, because the California wildfires have now burned an area equal to the size of Minneapolis.

CNN's Julia Vargas Jones is in Pacific Palisades.

Julia, what are you seeing there on the ground?

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're seeing people are starting to try to get back to their homes, and they're seeing that it is completely unrecognizable.

[11:35:07]

And we're hearing from these officials some really important updates and some information that I do want to share with you now. And the first thing is something that happened to our team here. We have been receiving alerts. These have been critical alerts to get people to evacuate specific areas.

As you know, we have five different fires burning in Los Angeles. People need and they rely on this kind of information to be able to know when they need to leave their homes. I got this at my house last night. I received an alert that said, evacuate immediately, gather your pets, your belongings and leave; 20 minutes later, we got another alert that said, disregard the last evacuation warning. It was for Kenneth Fire only. Go to AlertLA.org for more information.

Of course, that has caused so much panic. And officials are now saying, look, this is unacceptable. We had a city official saying that they will investigate. How is it that this happened, that it is unacceptable that, in the middle of all of this panic, to be inserting even more uncertainty into people who are just trying to be safe.

We also heard that this was not human error, that this was not a person behind a desk pushing those alerts out. This was an error from their system. But they will be investigating, so that this does not happen anymore. But this is important to note. They're urging people to not turn off their alerts on their phone.

They have been going off, but it is important because it could make the difference between life and death. Now, another topic that they spoke about that is important is this Kenneth Fire. There's been an arrest made of a man, then the suspicion of arson. They don't know if this person is connected with the beginning, the starting of the Kenneth Fire near Calabasas.

That's not too far from where we are here in the Palisades. But it is a fire that started, the latest fire to start of this five. We are hearing also the National Guard has been deployed yesterday. We knew they were coming into Altadena to fight the Eaton Fire, the Eaton Fire, by the way, and the Palisades Fire, two of the most destructive fires in California history.

They're number three and four. And they're happening at the same time. It just goes to show how unprecedented this all is that's taking place in California, just this tragedy of extreme, extreme proportions.

BROWN: We just -- we haven't seen anything on this scale. You can't even wrap your head around it.

Julia Vargas Jones, stay safe out there. Thank you.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:42:30]

BROWN: Officials say the tide may be turning on the Palisades Fire, but with less than 10 percent of it contained, most people have not even been allowed back to check on their homes or what's left of them.

Two people who have not been back join us now, Heide Banks and her boyfriend, Jeb Brien. Heide's home is on the hillside in Palisades and Jeb lives in downtown Palisades.

Heide, do you even know if your home is still standing?

HEIDE BANKS, CALIFORNIA RESIDENT: I have no idea.

Yesterday afternoon, at about 1:00, somebody got up there. I don't know how. And the houses above me, which are literally maybe 200 yards, were all burnt down. The house right below me was intact. I have no idea what could have happened overnight, what could have happened the rest of yesterday. We're just in limbo.

And even -- even if it is intact -- I'm sorry. With everything around us gone and all of our neighbors, we just don't know. We know nothing and we keep asking and trying to get up to the house. We're trying to get up there. I need to get some medication out of the house that I forgot. And they just will not let us up there.

BROWN: And you got sort of emotional thinking about, even if it is still standing, the community is no longer there.

JEB BRIEN, CALIFORNIA RESIDENT: Yes.

BROWN: Go ahead.

BRIEN: It's a mix right now of optimism and grief. That's what we're going through.

We know so many people who have lost homes. We have been in a hotel. Fortunately, for us, we have been safe, but we have met people that we have embraced and new friends. And then, hours later, they come knock on our door and said, hey, by the way, we lost our home.

And it's apocalyptic what's going on right now. And, like Heide said, our community is gone.

BANKS: Yes.

BRIEN: And fortunately, for me, it looks like my building is the last one standing in the village, my condo. And so, for that, I'm fortunate, but there's nothing but rubble around. It looks like Dresden after the Second World War. It's sad.

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: And just sitting in that uncertainty, Heide, and limbo just must be agonizing.

[11:45:00]

BANKS: It really is.

I mean, I have spent my life -- my career is helping people through grief, helping people deal with stuff like this. And I have to say things like, well, at least, at least you have got your health. Yes, and, of course.

But when you're watching your community, you're -- the people, you just -- the Palisades is just not a place to live. It is truly a community. We are always here for each other. And I know we will be here as we rebuild. We all know that. But in this moment right now, the uncertainty, we're just all holding out that things will get better. And yet we are in the midst of this grief.

It's undeniable. It's palpable everywhere you look.

BROWN: As someone who, as you said, dedicated their lives to helping others with grief, how are you sort of using those coping tools to help yourself through this unimaginably difficult time? You don't know if your home is still there, but you do know your neighbors' homes aren't there and that they are going through an incredibly difficult time and your community that you loved is no longer there.

BANKS: I'm just -- I'm allowing myself these feelings. I think that's just really important that you don't deny what's going on, and yet you hold out in hope.

So it's -- as Jeb has said, you -- it's the up and the down. And you just know it's a wave. And anybody who's been in an ocean knows that the wave comes. Sometimes, it washes over you. Sometimes, the water's clear. And we're up and down. And that's just -- we're just knowing that's the new normal for right now. And that -- and that alone brings comfort, you know?

BRIEN: You know, Pamela, we're adults, but I have grandchildren in this community. Some go to public schools. Some go to private schools. They have no schools right now.

So their coping mechanism going forward, how is that going to impact them? That's what I think of. You know, it's -- how is it going to impact them, first the pandemic and now this? And it's -- when Heide said sense of community, when your schools are gone, you have really lost your community.

And that's what we're going through right now in the Palisades.

BANKS: Yes. Yes.

(CROSSTALK)

BANKS: And we know we're the lucky ones. We know we're lucky. We know that, whether our homes are there or not, that we have each other and that we have friends.

And the people who have reached out to us and the loving, that's what's getting us through.

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: Heide Banks, Jeb Brien, I hope that you will stay in touch with us. Heide, I wish you the best. I hope that your home is still standing. But even if it is, as you said, it's still so much to grieve over. Thank you both. Keep us updated.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:52:41]

BROWN: I'm going to bring in Griff and Kit Goldsmith. They lost everything in the Altadena fire from the Eaton Fire -- in Altadena, I should say, from the Eaton Fire. And they're expecting their first baby next month.

They are the brother-in-law and sister-in-law of the actress and senior Mandy Moore.

Kit, we were just talking in the break. You're about to have your first baby in a few weeks. You were in the nesting mode, getting the nursery ready, getting everything ready for your precious baby. And now you have lost your home and you had to flee for your life. How are you feeling?

KIT GOLDSMITH, CALIFORNIA RESIDENT: Yes, we are definitely, as everyone in our community, in truly unbelievable circumstances.

I don't think we had enough time to process what we're all being confronted with. And the idea of trying to figure out where we're going to be for the next month, where we're going to have this baby is all really hard to process, given that it's all just been in the last 48 hours where this has kind of come down on us.

I think the thing that I'm truly the saddest about is having lost our community. We had so many friends and a massive support group there that I was really, really planning to lean on. And losing them, it's like -- it's almost harder than losing our home, because I know we're all going to be scattered from each other.

So it's -- yes, we're just going to have to start all together from scratch and rebuild.

BROWN: I sense that is the hardest part for everyone I have talked to, the loss of community, you as a new mother wanting to lean on that community and feeling like now you just -- you don't have any community to lean on. You don't know where you're going to be in the next day, the next week.

And for your part, Griff, you're a musician. You lost all of your instruments. You lost your source of your livelihood.

GRIFFIN GOLDSMITH, CALIFORNIA RESIDENT: Yes, it's been something I have collected for 20 years, and it's gone.

But it's been a pretty -- it's been a test in how to -- what's valuable in your life? And from one day to the next, I -- everything that I have built is gone. But I have my family and our pets and my parents are here and our niece. And so it's just -- yes, I'm just trying to remind myself, like, that's gear. This is what matters to me.

[11:55:13]

And I am still a musician and I can still play music. So I plan on doing that.

BROWN: And you said, Mandy Moore, I guess they have -- there's a studio at their house that was built for you and your brother, right, that's still standing.

G. GOLDSMITH: Yes, that part's -- no, it's not. The studio is, from what I...

BROWN: Oh, that's not still standing. OK. But there...

G. GOLDSMITH: Yes, that one -- from what I have heard, that was more on fire than anything else at the time that our friend went down there. It was a -- I think his words were, it was a literal inferno.

BROWN: Oh, wow.

G. GOLDSMITH: Which is pretty devastating, because that place has been around for less than a year.

And we have just been breaking it in. And, I mean, the day that that -- the day of the fire, we were in there working until 3:30.

BROWN: Oh, my gosh.

GOLDSMITH: And it just felt so good. And it felt like we were finally -- like, oh, this feels like our record. This feels like something that -- this feels like a place we can -- we can just continue to work after the rest of our lives. Like, it was really getting to that place.

Studios need to be lived in. They need -- we need people in there to use them. And it was just finally getting broken in, if that makes sense.

K. GOLDSMITH: They had poured their heart and soul into that place. It was also a place where they were going to open it up to other musicians to be able to use. And that aspect of their community is also now struggling. So...

G. GOLDSMITH: Yes, but on the other hand, every musician I know and every non-musician too, everybody's been so incredibly supportive that it's been strange to have lost everything and then feel so much gratitude for what everybody's giving us and everybody reaching out and just wanting to help, knowing that this baby's on the way.

(CROSSTALK)

G. GOLDSMITH: People saying they want to ship me drum kits. It's incredible.

BROWN: Oh, yes, that's incredible. I know there's like a GoFundMe page for you I saw on Mandy Moore's Instagram. That's how I initially found you all. And my heart just sunk when I saw everything you're going through, baby on the way, lost all of your instruments, lost your studio. It's just so much to even bear.

But you're not alone, as you said. People are reaching out to help, but also other people are suffering too. There's so many in your same boat right now. And we are just wishing you the best. And you're going to be OK. That baby's going to be OK. You're going to land on your feet somehow, some way.

Griffin, Kit Goldsmith, please keep us posted on how things go. Thank you so much for coming on to talk.

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: Thank you for joining me. I'm Pamela Brown. You can follow me on Instagram, TikTok and X @PamelaBrownCNN.

CNN's coverage of the devastating wildfires in California continues after a short break.