- 22-year-old Tabitha Snavely evacuated her apartment before the Palisades fire.
- Snavely, who works multiple jobs, said many in her building were blue-collar workers or older people.
- She evacuated to her parents’ house and told BI that she needs to find a new place to live that is closer to work.
This essay as stated is based on interviews with Tabitha Snavelya 22-year-old Palisades resident. Her identity and employment has been verified by Business Insider. This story has been edited for length and clarity.
I’m 22 years old and live alone in a mid-rise rental in the Palisades. I’ve lived in California my whole life, so this isn’t my first time dealing with a fire.
On Tuesday evening, I woke up to an evacuation alarm. I had about 45 minutes to pack and feed my dog very quickly because I didn’t know when we would be in a safe area. While I was packing, I started to smell smoke in my unit. As soon as I started smelling the smoke, I said, “OK, I have to go now.”
I threw some clothes in a suitcase, grabbed my dog, loaded up my car and started driving. I took everything I had the instinct to get out in case of an emergency, like my phone, laptop, some clothes.
When I came out of the parking garage, I saw so much smoke and then hundreds of cars trying to get out. Fortunately, I’m closer to the Pacific Coast Highway, so I was able to get out pretty quickly.
I evacuated to San Diego. My family thought it was a better idea for me to evacuate here with them than to go to a friend in Santa Monica or Hollywood, because as the fire continues to grow, more people seem to continue to evacuate.
The consequences
I saw on the Watch Duty app on Wednesday that my apartment building was in a bright red zone – indicating that it was in the path of fire. My unit specifically is located on the inside of the building, so I was hoping that not everything in my unit was damaged.
I plan to check it out over the weekend. Now, I’ve seen the news footage showing my street and the buildings that burned, including my apartment building.
Everything I left behind may now be gone: photos, books, my college degree. I had my great grandmother’s quilt that she made for me before she passed away. I also had a set of plates and glasses that my grandmother gave me when she died. A lot of my stuff is thrifted or pointless, so it’s not easily replaceable.
At the same time, my parents are selling their house, so the place where I can stay for evacuation, although it is not close to my work, is very temporary. I feel like a drifter with nowhere to go because I don’t want to impose myself on my friends for too long without a definite plan of where to go.
A lot of my friends live in Santa Monica, Brentwood or Malibu, and they’re starting to evacuate now, but some of them have been able to get back into their homes.
I am close to many seniors who have lived in the Palisades for decades. I would hang out with them in the coffee shop for hours. I don’t know how any of them are doing because many of them only have landlines and not cell phones.
It’s hard for me to feel at home, but this apartment finally felt like home. I loved everything about it.
It’s not just rich people who live in the Palisades
I also know a lot of people think Palisades is very rich, but I don’t feel rich. I have a lot of work. A lot of the people in my building are blue-collar workers, and there are a lot of seniors in Palisades.
I work for a coconut water company, which allowed me to telecommute for the next week before coming back in person. I’m also a personal assistant for someone who owns a film production company, which also gave me a week off.
Luckily I have renter’s insurance, but I don’t know where I’ll be living. Airbnb has been offering a free week to people who have lost their homes, but I filled out the form and haven’t heard anything yet.
I have friends who have offered me their couches to sleep on until I figure out what to do next, but I still don’t have a definitive plan because I’ve been so scattered since the fire evacuation alarm woke me up.
I think we should have more compassion at this time because online, I’ve seen a lot of people saying that Palisades is too rich and everyone can only afford to rebuild.
No one deserves to lose their home.
