PaliHi Parking Lot Fire Burns 7 Cars

Palisades High School students were greeted with an evacuation to the football field early on Thursday, May 15, after a brush fire broke out in a student parking lot. The fire damaged seven cars and burned the brush along a hillside leading up to El Medio Ave.

No one was hurt and no structures were damaged on a day when temperatures soared into the upper 90s in Pacific Palisades.

The fire was first reported at 8 a.m. and was extinguished by 8:40 a.m. according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

According to Capt. Mike Ketaily of Station 69, “One automobile parked up against [the dry brush], and we’re surmising that the exhaust from the automobile heated up the brush and started the brush fire.”

Ketaily also noted that the parking lot could benefit from brush clearance and said it serves as a reminder to all Palisades residents about the importance of brush clearance.

Chief Steve Ruda, commander of the department’s community liaison office, told the Post that with the red flag warning in place throughout the city last week, there were 11 additional engines deployed to the most brush-prone areas of L.A., including the Santa Monica Mountains and along Mulholland Drive. One was added to Station 69 prior to the PaliHi fire.

“We believe a rapid response will keep a small fire small,” said Ruda, who noted that the PaliHi fire burned less than a quarter acre.

PaliHi Assistant Principal Russel Howard credited Stations 69 and 23 for their rapid response. He also hailed PaliHi’s Head of Security Jorge Gracias for his swift actions.

“Jorge Gracias turned on the sprinklers in the area that was burning for 10 minutes before the firefighters arrived,” Howard said.

“There were still some flames in the brush when the firefighters arrived,” Gracias said.

Gracias also tackled the task of writing down the license plate numbers of the burned vehicles so he and Howard could deliver the news about the damage to the students who drove those cars.

Students waited on the football field until firefighters gave the okay that it was safe to return to the classrooms.

Just two days later on Saturday, May 17, grounds crews were seen clearing brush from the high school parking lot’s hillside.

–Additional reporting by Frances Sharpe.