Los Angeles firefighters and a lady whose residence they protected against the Palisades Hearth proved that kindness and braveness is usually a highly effective mixture in a time of tragedy and devastation.
Mahsa Naghash and her husband have been compelled to evacuate from their Pacific Palisades residence Jan. 7 as flames and sizzling embers fanned by a Santa Ana windstorm threatened their neighborhood. Video from the primary hours of the fireplace, which destroyed 1000’s of constructions, confirmed a neighbor’s home catching hearth in an unsettling scene.
However earlier than Naghash evacuated, she needed firefighters to understand how a lot their heroic efforts within the face of brutal circumstances have been appreciated. Naghash gave them a handmade tile she purchased at a historic mosque in her residence nation of Iran.
“I told them there’s something, just to say thank you. That’s it,” Naghash mentioned.
LAFD firefighter-paramedic Andrew Mott mentioned Naghash’s considerate gesture meant rather more. It a brilliant spot at a discouraging time as flames burned complete neighborhoods to the bottom.
“Her kindness and her generosity just touched our hearts in a very special way,” mentioned Mott.
Firefighters have described circumstances on Jan. 7 as among the many worst they’ve ever seen. The hearth began that morning and, pushed by 60 mph to 80 mph wind gusts within the preliminary hours, grew to develop into the third-most harmful hearth on report in California.
“It was unbelievable, truly. To experience that level of wind, that speed of wind, with a fire behind it,” mentioned LAFD firefighter-paramedic Tony Verdecia. “We’re the folks purported to be bringing an answer and there was a sense of… we’re not capable of.
“These weren’t just homes. These weren’t just buildings. These were people. These were families that were either losing everything or on the brink of losing everything.”
In what appeared like an unlikely end result once they left, the Naghashs’ home was broken, however nonetheless standing. When she returned just a few days later, there was a be aware on the door.
Here is what it mentioned: “Hello, This note is from Andrew and Tony, the 2 firemen you met, and gifted the tile to. We came back to check on you and your home. We are thankful to see the main portion of your home is ok. I’m sorry about the loss in the backyard. We hope you are safe and doing ok. If you like to stay in touch, feel free to reach out. Respectfully, Andrew and Tony with the LA City Fire Department.”
Naghash mentioned she was overcome with gratitude.
“I don’t know how to describe my feeling to be honest with you. I don’t know what to say,” she mentioned. “If I wish to begin speaking, I can’t cease crying.
“They risked their lives. God bless them.”
it has been practically two weeks because the begin of the historic wildfires in Southern California, this is a glance again on the moments captured within the first 24 hours of the devastation. Photographer Sean Browning studies for the NBC4 Information at 11 p.m. on Jan. 19, 2025.
NBCLA tracked down the 2 firefighters with assist from social media. They mentioned they noticed a earlier NBCLA report detailing Naghash’s expertise.
Mott mentioned the tile held particular which means for him. He has visited Iran a number of occasions in what he described as life-changing journeys.
The firefighters mentioned they left Naghash’s residence on the chaotic and evening of Jan. 7 to proceed the battle elsewhere. They returned the following day with the be aware.
“In a moment when there’s so much destruction all around us and she’s on the brink of losing her family’s home, and she thinks, ‘Let me bless them with a gift,'” Verdecia mentioned.
The firefighters and their households plan to get along with the Naghash household for dinner within the months forward.
“I felt like I really couldn’t do enough in that moment to really say thank you,” Mott mentioned. “So it actually sat heavy on Tony and my coronary heart. We simply needed to take that additional effort, take that additional effort to return that generosity and return that kindness.
The Palisades Hearth has destroyed 6,770 constructions. It was at 23,400 acres Thursday with containment at 72 p.c.
About 900 constructions have been broken by the fireplace.
Twenty-eight deaths have been confirmed within the Palisades Hearth and the Eaton Hearth in Altadena, which began the evening of Jan. 7.
