Three fire-recovery events scheduled over next 10 days
A landscaping lecture, a Fire Safe Festival in Malibu Canyon and the PaliBu Recovery Expo are all set for the coming days.
Topic
Wildfire Recovery
28 stories
Malibu to shrink annual Safety and Preparedness Fair
City Manager will downsize the September event to an indoor format as Malibu reckons with budget strain and event overload.
State Farm faces tiny fines after 398 violations found
California regulators found State Farm violated insurance law hundreds of times after the 2025 fires, but state law caps fines at $5,000 each.
Council slows plan check but rejects builder self-certification
Malibu City Council adopted language to speed rebuilding reviews but stopped short of letting architects self-certify their plans comply with code.
Prosecutors: Palisades arson suspect was angry, jilted on New Year's Eve
Federal trial memo describes Jonathan Rinderknecht as lonely and "pissed off about the world" the night the fire was set.
Topanga Lagoon restoration accelerates after Palisades Fire
Plans to remove the 80-year-old PCH bridge and expand the lagoon to as much as 10 acres are moving forward with new state funding.
Lawsuit Says MRCA Hikers Are Trampling Sensitive Habitat
The 257-page complaint alleges the parks agency is violating the California Coastal Act through poor trail management.
Agoura Hills Defends Plan That Could Close Kanan Road in Fires
Officials say emergency provisions are in place, but their traffic counts assume no surge of evacuees from Malibu.
Malibu's Mikke Pierson Pitches Disappearing House on Shark Tank
The Malibu West resident appears tonight at 9 on ABC to pitch HiberTec — a home that drops into a vault when fire approaches.
Malibu sues MRCA over Escondido Falls trail ownership
City seeks court order transferring trail interests from county and parks agency, citing pedestrian deaths and environmental damage.
Agoura Hills plan would close Kanan Road in major fire
Draft evacuation plan up for public comment Thursday assumes no traffic leaves Malibu, alarming mountain residents.
Controlled pile burn planned Friday above Topanga Canyon
First intentional burn in the Santa Monica Mountains in decades will dispose of brush cuttings along Summit-to-Summit Motorway.
State Parks charges Malibu homeowners $150 to clear brush on park land
Residents within 100 feet of state parkland are legally responsible for fuel modification — and must pay for a permit to do it.
Edison nearly done burying PCH power lines — but cables stay
Telecom companies aren't required to underground their thick black lines and have no incentive to do so in Malibu.
City council to discuss Palisades Fire lawsuit in closed session
Malibu is suing Los Angeles, the state, MRCA and others over the Palisades Fire. State Parks, also a defendant, will brief the council the same night.
Wildfire costs add $40 a month to power bills
Wildfire-related charges now make up 17% of monthly Southern California Edison bills, and the utility wants more from the state insurance fund.
Pro-housing group sues over governor's SB 9 fire-zone suspension
YIMBY says Governor's emergency orders allowing Malibu to limit lot splits and ADUs in the fire area are unconstitutional.
Malibu Savings Drained as FEMA Money Stalled at White House
City manager proposes 10 percent cuts across all departments as reserves fall from $84 million to $55 million.
Busch Drive tank flushed again as Malibu Park water deemed safe
Wind blew open an inspection hatch on the 80-year-old tank, prompting a boil-water order, drainage and superchlorination before service resumes Wednesday.
State delays Zone Zero rules; public hearing set for April 23
California's Board of Forestry has paused the controversial defensible-space rule requiring clearing within five feet of homes.
54 more apartments coming to jammed Kanan Road interchange
Agoura Hills will add a four-story, income-restricted complex next to another 278-unit project at Malibu's emergency fire exit.
Council subcommittee questions library mental health hire
With $28 million in a library set-aside account, council members ask whether a proposed outreach worker duplicates Boys and Girls Club services.
Waterworks breaks ground on Carbon Mesa water main
Project will replace aging, undersized lines that have blocked some Carbon Mesa Road building approvals.
Point Dume food truck sweep finds zero valid licenses
A task force cited every truck checked, and operators are now playing cat and mouse with city officials.
Trump joins critics of State Farm over wildfire claims
President pledges a federal probe of insurers' handling of California fire claims as administration cuts disaster aid.
Heat and Santa Anas push Malibu toward early fire danger
Fire safety liaison warns brush moisture is dropping fast, with a possible heavy El Niño looming this winter.
City Reviews Its Own Fire Response — But Only Its Own
Tonight's after-action report examines Malibu city staff during the Palisades and Franklin fires, but not the county fire department's actions.
Malibu Marks Earth Month With Talks, Cleanups, Giveaways
The city has lined up events on dark skies, chaparral fire ecology, hazmat collection, pollinator plants and a Bill McKibben talk.