'Dr. Quinn' star compares Palisades Fire aftermath to Hiroshima
2025-01-18
Category: entertainment

Joe Lando is devastated after losing his home in the Palisades Fire. During an interview with Fox News Digital Thursday, the "Dr. Quinn" star explained that now that he's been able to clear his mind, he's grasping the extent of damage to his community in Pacific Palisades. "I'm replaying what happened. And I'm getting a little aggravated now because I'm realizing there were so many things that happened that morning that could have possibly made this far less of the disaster that it turned out to be," Lando said.  "I mean, my neighborhood looks like Hiroshima," the actor explained. CALIFORNIA FIRES: ESSENTIAL PHONE NUMBERS FOR LOS ANGELES-AREA RESIDENTS AND HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM Lando noted that part of Pacific Palisades still stands, which locals call "Carusoville." "Rick Caruso, a land developer-builder, bought a little part of our town and put some stores there," he explained. "And he had his own private fire department there, I believe, on Tuesday, and that's the only thing that's left standing. And you could hit one of his buildings from my house with a rock." "I mean, my neighborhood looks like Hiroshima."  Lando said Caruso, who lives in Pacific Palisades, was just trying to protect what was his, which many residents opted to do, even Lando. "My son Christian and I, we stayed behind to fight the fire for hours. I mean hours. [We] dumped water on top of my roof, my neighbor's roof," he said.&nbsp; "But I was concerned. WATCH: 'Dr. Quinn' star compares Palisades Fire aftermath to Hiroshima  "If that catches fire, you'll catch my house on fire and my other neighbors. So, we were hosing down, you know, each other's homes for a bit. And then people certainly slowly drop off. And Christian and I stayed there till the very, very end," Lando said. Eventually, Lando and his son had to leave their home. Initially, they went to his son's apartment in Santa Monica, and the star recognized people from his neighborhood that relocated toward the coast to escape the flames.   "And, you know, like I've said before, if it was just my house, this wouldn't be as tough to bear. But it's everybody, and it's everything we know. It's our world," Lando said. He explained to Fox News Digital that many of his neighbors, himself included, may never be able to rebuild after the Palisades Fire. WATCH: Joe Lando salutes the firefighters who helped defend Pacific Palisades  "They were three-bedroom, two-bath houses that belonged to elderly folks. They're never going to be able to rebuild here again. I don't know if I'm going to be able to rebuild because, three months before this fire, the insurance company, Allstate, dropped my entire street," Lando said. LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS Lando expressed frustration and pointed out a reservoir that was behind his house that had been "empty" the last 18 months.   "That would have meant helicopters could have been to the fire in literally seconds instead of having to go all the way to the ocean and fill up and come back again to drop it because the fire was right there," he said. Lando said he is "convinced" someone started the Palisades Fire. "I saw right where it was. This wasn't the climate. This wasn't a downed power line. This wasn't a gardener or a car hitting a rock or anything like that. "It was Skull Rock. Somebody walked in. They started that fire. And then I watched it go from one spot to two to three spots, and it was five spots. And I know the wind was strong at that point. Maybe all those other spots were caused by that first fire. But that very first puff of smoke at 9 was a man starting this fire. I'm convinced of it," Lando said. WATCH: Joe Lando stayed behind with his son to defend his home from the Palisades Fire  Lando is not the first celebrity to float the arson theory. However, officials have said that they have not determined the cause of the Palisades Fire. On Jan. 9, authorities deployed arson investigators to the Pacific Palisades to determine the origin of the blaze that consumed thousands of buildings. "The cause of the fire remains unknown, and it continues to be under active investigation," Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said at the time.  During his interview with Fox News Digital, Lando explained that this is an emotional time for him but wanted to thank the firefighters and first responders who fought to preserve the Pacific Palisades. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER "I want to first thank all the firefighters, first responders, people that helped try to save our homes. It is such a dangerous job, one we don't appreciate until you live through what I just lived through with my son and my family," he said. While he was evacuating, Jane Seymour opened her home to her "Dr. Quinn" co-star.  "My wife and I spent the night in a hotel. Things are just still burning out of control. It was very smoky. And Jane said, 'Come up here. There's no smoke up here. The air is clear.' They didn't have water or power here, but that doesn't matter. It was a safe place where the air was clear," Lando said. WATCH: Joe Lando thanked God for having someone like Jane Seymour in his life  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP "I just thank God that there's somebody like Jane, and there's a lot of people in the world like Jane. This has done something where it's brought out the best. As always, these tragedies bring out the best of us. If we could only hang on to these feelings and remember them, you know, when we get so down on each other."