Before and After Satellite Photos Show Damage Done by LA Wildfires
Satellite images have laid bare the terrible damage done by the Los Angeles wildfires which have devastated the city and claimed the lives of at least 24 people.
The images, such as the one below showing Pacific Palisades on October 10, 2024, and January 9, 2025, were captured by the satellites belonging to Maxar Technologies and Airbus.
The Palisades fire decimated Malibu with a third of eastern Malibu described as “gone” by the mayor. “It has hit us hard,” says mayor Doug Stewart. “Malibu has lost approximately one-third of its eastern edge of the city.”
Entire neighborhoods have been erased including Big Rock and Carbon Mesa. The fire consumed Malibu so quickly that authorities struggled to warn citizens of the danger and were hampered by communication difficulties caused by the fire.
The image below shows Malibu Beach a year earlier on January 18, 2024, and then after the fires on January 9, 2025.
The below image, courtesy of Pléiades Neo © Airbus DS 2025, shows the houses that surround Palisades Charter High School. Deadline describes fire damage to the school as “significant” noting that it is where Carrie was filmed. In a Facebook post by the school, it estimates that 40 percent of the buildings have been either “damaged or destroyed.”
The below satellite images, courtesy of Maxar Technologies, show destroyed structures in Altadena. Alatadena has been affected by the Eaton fire which has leveled rows and rows of homes.
The Eaton fire has burned 14,117 acres and Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna says he knows displaced residents want to return to their neighborhoods, but warns, “we are in the third day of grid searching” in Altadena.
“It is a very grim task,” he adds, noting that every day crews are finding people’s remains.
The final picture, below, shows the Pacific Palisades on October 20, 2024, and on January 9, 2025. Taken by Maxar Technologies, it shows the vast area where the largest fire has burned.
Earlier today, PetaPixel reported on a rare bright spot: firefighters going the extra mile by saving family photo albums from a burning house in the Pacific Palisades.
Image credits: Header image courtesy of Maxar Technologies.
