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Pictures of L.A. fire damage show aftermath of California blazes

How suburban sprawl, climate change fuel wildfires
How suburban sprawl and climate change fuel wildfires 03:15

As wind-whipped fires turned the L.A.-area neighborhoods of Pacific Palisades and Altadena from sunny Southern California paradise into smoky hellscape, photojournalists who captured the blazes have also documented their aftermath.

The two largest Southern California fires that sparked last week have destroyed more than 12,000 structures, including homes and businesses. The fires continue to burn, and the full extent of the damage is still unknown.

These latest photos show what's left of places thousands of people call home:

Palisades Fire damage

What caused the massive blaze in Pacific Palisades is still unknown, but CBS News has analyzed maps, photos and videos to link the Palisades fire that started last week to another fire in the same area on New Year's Eve.

Officials said they have not ruled out whether embers from the New Year's Eve fire sparked back up amid high winds on Jan. 7.

Powerful Winds Fuel Multiple Fires Across Los Angeles Area
An aerial view of utility vehicles parked near beachfront homes destroyed in the Palisades Fire as wildfires cause damage and loss through the L.A. region on Jan. 13, 2025 in Malibu, California. Getty Images

In the photo below, Patrick O'Neal sifts through the remains of his home in Malibu after it was destroyed by the Palisades Fire. 

"I'm trying to figure out where I am in the house... I think i'm standing in my dad's bathroom," he said. "To be honest, I don't even know what I'm looking for I guess I'm just trying to make sense of it. There's nothing left, just ash and bricks — there's nothing."

Powerful Winds Fuel Multiple Fires Across Los Angeles Area
Patrick O'Neal sifts through his home after it was destroyed by the Palisades wildfire on Jan. 13, 2025 in Malibu, California. Brandon Bell / Getty Images
Scenes Of Devastation Along Pacific Coast Highway From California Wildfires
Vehicles on the Palisades section of Pacific Coast Highway, alongside scorched structures and trees, on Jan. 12, 2025. Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images
As recovery from the Palisades Fire continues, firefighters brace for another wind event
As Edison crews begin work to restore power along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, firefighters continue to water down hot spots from the Palisades Fire on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
Powerful Winds Fuel Multiple Fires Across Los Angeles Area
An aerial view of homes destroyed in the Palisades Fire on Jan. 13, 2025. / Getty Images
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Charred homes and burnt cars are pictured amid the rubble of the fire-ravaged Pacific Palisades Bowl Mobile Estates in Los Angeles, California, on Jan. 13, 2025. AGUSTIN PAULLIER/AFP via Getty Images
LA school superintendent Alberto Carvalho tours Brentwood science magnet, and Nora Sterry Elementary two locations that will host students that schools were destroyed by fire in the Pacific Palisades
Marquez Charter Elementary who school was destroyed by fire in the Pacific Palisades on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Eaton Fire damage

The second of the largest wildfires burning in the L.A. area has decimated Altadena neighborhoods and spread to communities along the Angeles National Forest line, including Pasadena and Sierra Madre. 

Attorneys representing some of those affected by the Eaton Fire filed a lawsuit against Southern California Edison alleging that the company's equipment sparked the disastrous blaze.

Powerful Winds Fuel Multiple Fires Across Los Angeles Area
An aerial view of destroyed houses in a neighborhood after the Eaton Fire on Jan. 12, 2025 in Altadena, California. David McNew / Getty Images
Aftermath Of Eaton Fire In Altadena In Los Angeles County
A lot full of burned out vehicles after the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on Jan. 13, 2025. Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Eaton Fire in Altadena
City of Santa Barbara Fire Captain Aaron Vaughn searches a burned home for victims of the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
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A burnt out school bus is seen at the fire-damaged Aveson Charter School from the aftermath of the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California on Jan. 13, 2025. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images
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Evacuees from the Eaton Fire dwell among heaps of clothes displayed on the ground at a donation center in Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, California, on Jan. 13, 2025. ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images
US-WEATHER-FIRE
Volunteers carry water for evacuees from the Eaton Fire at a donation center in Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, California, on Jan. 13, 2025. ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images
US-WEATHER-FIRE
A picture taken from the Angeles National Forest shows an entire neighborhood of Altadena destroyed by the Eaton Fire, on Jan. 13, 2025. ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images

L.A. fire damage map

To see the documented destruction in details, down to a specific address, Los Angeles County has provided preliminary maps that show which structures and homes are damaged or destroyed.

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