U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Recovery Field Office Commander Col. Eric Swenson provides a look at the past six months of collaboration and debris removal effort in the Eaton and Palisades fire impact area. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers video by Charles Delano)

Col. Jeff Palazzini, Commander of the Palisades Emergency Field Office, provides an update on the Southern California wildfire debris removal mission.

Shana Rushing, a Critical Stress Incident Management Lead for the 2025 Southern California wildfires, describes what her position entails and why she chooses to deploy.

Aden Keim, a quality assurance inspector for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2025 Southern California wildfires, discusses his role and what deployment means to him.

"When you volunteer to be part of it you bring an expeditionary mindset with you. You bring a problem solving mindset and that's what we have here, a bunch of technical, expert professionals who want to help these people in Southern California whose homes have been completely destroyed. They want to be here, they want to solve problems, they want to make it better, and they are." - Col. Jeffrey Palazzini, Commander, EFO-Palisades

Twenty-four hundred trucks, 30,000 tons of debris and 222 cleared parcels later, Pacific Coast Highway is open again. “The reopening of Pacific Coast Highway is a major milestone in Southern California’s recovery from January’s devastating wildfires,” said Col. Jeffrey Palazzini, commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Emergency Field Office-Palisades. “We are very proud of how our work – and that of our local, state, federal and contracting partners – has helped bring back this vital part of the community’s identity and economic activity. This has truly been a monumental effort, but there is still work to be done.” While PCH is open, the Army Corps of Engineers asks the public for its patience as PCH will remain a major thoroughfare for continued progress on its historically fast and safe debris removal mission. Additional videography by Chris Rosario.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, together with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, today announced that more than 5,000 properties across the Eaton and Palisades burn areas have been cleared of ash and fire debris and received final sign off.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, together with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, today announced that more than 5,000 properties across the Eaton and Palisades burn areas have been cleared of ash and fire debris and received final sign off.

“The outreach team is really the Corps’ opportunity to show who we are to residents and survivors. Our primary duty is to show them that we are here, with boots on the ground, to help them.” - MAJ Mike Knowles, Emergency Field Office Palisades outreach team lead. In the months since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers deployed to Southern California to help residents and the local community recover from devastating wildfires, the Palisades outreach team has tirelessly sought out opportunities to engage the public, share information and offer assistance. Farmers’ markets, forums, town council meetings and one-on-one appointments with survivors are just a few of the ways the outreach team has fanned out into the Palisades community to support the USACE debris removal process. USACE is conducting Phase 2 Private Property Debris Removal under direction of FEMA in coordination with CAL OES and the County of Los Angeles. More than 200 USACE personnel are currently deployed in the area to support the largest fire debris removal mission in US Army Corps of Engineers history.