Podcast Summary: Apple News Today – "The True Toll of the Los Angeles Fires"

Host: Shumita Basu
Guest: Jacob Soboroff, Senior Reporter at MSNBC, Author of The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster
Release Date: January 17, 2026

Overview

In this powerful episode, host Shumita Basu speaks with journalist and author Jacob Soboroff about the 2025 Los Angeles fires—the most destructive series of fires in the county’s history. Soboroff reflects on his direct experience reporting amid crisis, the personal impact of losing his childhood home, and his investigation into the causes, communication failures, political fallout, and ongoing struggle of recovery in a city grappling with disaster.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Day the Fires Began

• Personal Memories and Immediate Impact
  • Jacob Soboroff recounts the disorienting experience as fires broke out, affecting neighborhoods he grew up in.
  • Quote: “I can close my eyes and remember what it felt like to see embers falling like rain, sometimes horizontally in all directions.” (Jacob Soboroff, 00:30)

How the Fires Started

• Origins and Contributing Factors
  • The Palisades Fire was linked to the rekindling of the Lockman Fire, allegedly arson-related, reignited by severe Santa Ana winds and extreme drought conditions. Faulty electrical equipment sparked the Eaton Fire simultaneously in another part of the county.
  • Advanced warnings from meteorologists were issued, but the speed and scale of the disaster overtook preparedness.
  • Quote: “They issued what was known as a particularly dangerous situation warning... that said if there is an ignition there could be catastrophic, will likely be catastrophic, consequences.” (Jacob Soboroff, 02:54)

Communication Failures and Evacuations

• Breakdown in Official Alerts

  • Emergency alerts failed to reach everyone; people relied on group texts, apps (Watch Duty, Genesis Protect), and local TV or radio for updates.
  • The chaos of evacuation led to scenes of people abandoning cars and running for their lives.
  • Quote: “I will never forget the scenes... of people abandoning their cars in the middle of the street, literally running for their lives because this all unfolded so, so quickly.” (Jacob Soboroff, 04:03)

• Reluctance and Realization

  • Many were hesitant to evacuate, struggling to accept the risk and speed of destruction.
  • “It’s a hard thing to wrap your head around that it’s possible. And that was sort of the thing I heard from both the Palisades and Altadena.” (Jacob Soboroff, 06:54)

Personal Loss and Community Grief

• Jacob's Loss
  • Soboroff shares about finding his own childhood home destroyed and the emotional toll on the community.
  • Quote: “It’s hard to imagine what comes next and what happens next.” (Jacob Soboroff, 08:58)
• Stories from the Ground
  • Personal accounts from residents, like restaurant employee Albie Fuentes, highlight the deep pain and dislocation.
  • Quotes:
    • “I have cried so much on these last days. It's so hard. It's so hard.” (Albie Fuentes, 08:23)
    • “I know my house is gone, but I kind of just need to see it firsthand to just let it sit in.” (Resident, 08:39)

Politics, Misinformation, & Disaster

• Leadership and Blame

  • Political response was fraught with blame and misinformation—Mayor Karen Bass was out of country, Trump (as President-elect) was posting disinformation about firefighting resources, and rumors about water supply abounded.
  • Quote: “All of these things converged in the moment to both increase the levels of anxiety for people on the ground and confuse people in the aftermath about what had actually happened and how and where you go from here.” (Jacob Soboroff, 09:42)

• Water Supply Controversy

  • Myths about a lack of water for firefighting were debunked: widespread use led to low pressure, not an absence of resources, but the situation was exploited by political leaders and conspiracy theorists.
  • “We were flowing just an amount of water that the system couldn’t overbear just because of how much water these firefighters were utilizing." (Firefighter reporting to Elon Musk, paraphrased by Soboroff, 12:44)
  • “It’s the politics of blame and misinformation and disinformation that has emerged as almost a constant to every natural disaster now.” (Jacob Soboroff, 13:54)

Ongoing Recovery and Policy Clash

• Federal and State Response

  • Disagreement persists between Governor Newsom and President Trump over aid and rebuilding strategy. Newsom’s promises of a “Marshall Plan” haven’t materialized; Trump touts recovery but attacks state leadership.
  • Quote: “Trump wants everybody to know that it's been the fastest environment in the history of the country and that he takes credit for that. But that Newsom is a failure and that he's doing nothing to help. I don't think any of that helps anybody.” (Jacob Soboroff, 15:40)

• Rebuilding Barriers

  • Even as environmental regulations are suspended to expedite rebuilding, soaring costs and insurance hurdles make returning home impossible for many.
  • “Affordability is a primary reason why I think many people are not going to show up back in the Palisades to rebuild their lives.” (Jacob Soboroff, 16:42)
  • Soboroff’s family is among those struggling with the question of returning.

• Community Conversations and Uncertainty

  • Residents are torn between leaving, trying to rebuild, or moving in with extended family—decisions shaped by loss, uncertainty, and changing demographics.
  • “What was lost is incalculable. You know, two entire communities in the most populous county in the country are gone now.” (Jacob Soboroff, 17:44)

Broader Factors: Climate, Politics, and Preparedness

• Not Just Climate: Compounding Issues
  • While climate change is central, population growth, poor communication infrastructure and political dysfunction compound vulnerability and impede recovery.
  • Federal cuts to programs like NASA Earth Sciences, NIOSH, and the NOAA disaster registry threaten future preparedness and accountability.
  • “We may never officially know the toll, the cost of this fire... For decades we have tracked natural disasters that have been fueled largely by climate change through the federal government. We're no longer doing that and there will no longer be an official estimate.” (Jacob Soboroff, 20:55)

Hope and Resilience

• People Leading the Way
  • Grassroots action, from researchers innovating on fire prediction to laborers rebuilding in spite of risk, give Soboroff hope.
  • Quote: “It is the people always that seem to rise up... and that, as I said, have given me really extraordinary hope in a really... awful situation.” (Jacob Soboroff, 22:14)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I can close my eyes and remember what it felt like to see embers falling like rain...” (Jacob Soboroff, 00:30)
• “Bulldozers having to push aside cars to get people out down to Pacific coast highway, literally to get to the ocean in order to try to avoid the flames.” (Jacob Soboroff, 05:25)
• “When an entire community is wiped off the map? I don’t think there are easy answers and I don’t think people are finding them from their politicians, state, local or federal.” (Jacob Soboroff, 17:20)
• “This is not some far fetched Hollywood story. This is coming to a community near you, probably your own.” (Jacob Soboroff, 23:45)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Personal recollection of fires starting: 00:30
• How the fires began and spread: 02:03 – 03:17
• Communication breakdowns: 03:37 – 05:25
• Evacuation hardships: 06:45
• On-the-ground loss and community impact: 07:38 – 09:11
• Political response and misinformation: 09:17 – 13:54
• Aid disputes and rebuilding challenges: 14:34 – 17:29
• Long-term grief and adaptation: 17:29 – 18:48
• Broader factors (climate, science, preparedness): 18:54 – 21:50
• Stories of resilience and hope: 21:54 – 22:46
• Final reflections on meaning and community: 23:01 – 24:12

Conclusion

This episode offers an unflinching, empathetic look at one of California’s worst disasters—its causes, the chaos it wrought, the failure and politicization of public institutions, and the ongoing challenge of recovery. Through Jacob Soboroff’s eyes and reporting, listeners are drawn into the reality of disaster’s toll and the urgent need for community, truth, and resilience in an age of mounting risk.