As wildfires continue to tear through the Los Angeles area, officials said that at least 27 people have died, though the actual death toll remains unknown.
The Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office has named some of the victims, while others were identified by family members, neighbors and friends. Among them are a father and son who were waiting to be evacuated, as well as residents who had weathered past wildfires and wanted to stay behind to protect their homes.
Here’s what we know about the victims so far.
Anthony and Justin Mitchell
A father and son died in their Altadena home on Wednesday, family members said.
Anthony Mitchell Jr. told The New York Times that his father, a 67-year-old amputee who used a wheelchair, called him early on Wednesday to say that he was waiting for Anthony’s brother, Justin, who has cerebral palsy and did not walk, to be evacuated. That night, both of them were found dead.
Mitchell said his father did not want to leave Justin behind. “He probably could have gotten himself out, but he wasn’t going to leave my brother,” he told NBC News. “He really loved his kids.”
Mitchell described his father as a family man who considered his family as his legacy. “He said, ‘Money don’t matter, property don’t matter. My kids and my family are my treasure,’” Mitchell told NBC News.
Mitchell said his brother Justin was a “sweet kid.” In an interview with The Washington Post, Justin’s half sister, Hajime White, said authorities told them that their father was found by Justin’s bedside.
People with disabilities are disproportionately affected by natural disasters. A 2019 state audit found that California emergency officials had continued to overlook people with disabilities and other vulnerable residents when preparing for disasters like wildfires. Victims of the deadly Camp Fire in 2018, for example, were mostly older or disabled.
Rodney Nickerson
Nickerson, 82, did not want to leave the home he lived in for decades and reassured family members and neighbors that he would be fine, his daughter Kimiko Nickerson told KTLA.
Her father had experienced other fires before, she said. “He said that he was going to gather up his stuff, but he said he was going to stay here, too,” she added. “He said that he felt this was going to pass over and that he would be here.”
Nickerson’s son, Eric Nickerson, told the New York Times his father was a retired aerospace engineer for Lockheed Martin and an active deacon at his church.
Victor Shaw
Shaw, 66, lived with his sister in the home that he grew up in. His sister, Shari Shaw, told KTLA that she tried to get him to evacuate with her Tuesday night as the Eaton Fire closed in, but that he was determined to stay behind and protect their home from the fire.
Shaw’s friend Al Tanner told KTLA that they found his burned body at the side of the road with a garden hose. “It looks like he was trying to save the home that his parents had for almost 55 years,” Tanner said.
Erliene Louise Kelley
Briana Navarro told NBC News that her 83-year-old grandmother, who had experienced a previous major wildfire, decided to stay behind when her family evacuated.
“My husband, he’s not from out here, so he kind of was looking at it a little different than we were,” Navarro said. “We asked [my grandmother] … and she’s like, ‘No, no I’m fine. You guys go ahead.’”
Kelley was a familiar face in the neighborhood, Navarro said. Terry Pyburn, a neighbor, described Kelley to the Times as an “angel” who was “so, so, so sweet.”
Randall Miod
Friends and family confirmed that Miod, a surfer and well-known figure in Malibu, died in the Palisades Fire.
Miod, 55, loved living a simple life in Malibu, in a house he called “the Crab Shack,” his friend Corina Cline told The Washington Post. His house burned down, and a cousin said that authorities found remains they believed to be Miod’s in the home, the Post reported.
Rory Callum Sykes
Sykes, a former child actor from Australia, died on his family’s Malibu estate on Wednesday, his mother, Shelley Sykes, wrote in a post on X.
According to the post, she could not put out the cinders on the roof of his cottage because of a lack of water.
Sykes, who was born blind and had cerebral palsy, starred in the British TV show “Kiddy Kapers.”
“He overcame so much with surgeries & therapies to regain his sight & to be able to learn to walk,” his mother wrote. “Despite the pain, he still enthused about traveling the world with me from Africa to Antarctica.”
Dalyce Curry
Curry’s granddaughter, Dalyce Kelley, dropped her off at home after a trip to the hospital when her Altadena neighborhood still seemed relatively safe from the fires, Kelley told The Associated Press. Kelley woke up early the next morning to a text message in her grandmother’s neighborhood group-chat asking if Curry had evacuated.
She had not. Curry might not have seen the evacuation warnings on her cellphone, Kelley told NBC News.
Curry was an actor with a big personality who had roles in films like “The Ten Commandments” and “The Blues Brothers.” She was part of old Black Hollywood in the 1950s and had deep connections to iconic Black stars of the era, her granddaughter said.
“It is so hard to look at all of this devastation and wonder what her last moments were,” Kelley told NBC News.
Arthur Simoneau
Simoneau was a hang-glider pilot who died trying to save his home, his friend Steve Murillo told The Los Angeles Times. The 69-year-old was returning from a ski trip when evacuation orders were issued for the Topanga area in the Santa Monica Mountains, where he lived. His body was found near the doorway of his home, Murillo said.
Simoneau was a daredevil, according to a verified fundraiser organized by his son, Andre: Those of us close to him always knew he wouldn’t die of old age or illness. Between hanggliding multiple times per week, riding motorcycles with a “for novelty use only” helmet, and skiing rock-lined chutes at Social Security age, it was always in the back of our heads that he would die in spectacular Arthur fashion. Unfortunately, he died in the Palisades fire protecting his house doing what he did best: being a badass and doing something only he was brave enough (or crazy enough) to do.
The Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that Mortimer was among those killed in the wildfires. His causes of death include smoke inhalation and burn injuries, the medical examiner’s report said. Meredith Mortimer, a niece, told CBS News that he traveled the world and was an avid sports fan. “He will be remembered as a man with a quick wit, a brilliant mind, and a love for his family,” she said. Winiecki, a 77-year-old retiree, died in her Altadena home last week, her longtime friend and neighbor Jeanette McMahon told NBC News. The two women and another friend often spent time together. They called themselves the “Three Amigos,” McMahon said. When McMahon evacuated on Jan. 8, Winiecki decided to stay behind. “When I think about it, I just think she couldn’t leave her house,” she told NBC News. “I don’t think she was necessarily thinking this is the end, but, ‘How could I leave this? This is my security, this is everything to me.’” Zhao, an 84-year-old China-born resident of Altadena who lived alone, died in the Eaton Fire, his son Shaw Zhao told CNN. Shaw had a flight scheduled to Los Angeles from his Portland, Oregon, home on Jan. 8, but when he learned about the fires and tried to get ahold of his father the night before, he could not reach him. When he landed in L.A., Shaw’s Lyft driver, Gilian Villatoro, helped him look for his father, CNN reported. The next day, Villatoro and his wife accompanied Shaw to see the ruins of the Altadena home and found his father’s remains. “I cried very dry and my friends [Villatoro and his wife] tried to hold me,” Shaw told CNN. “I feel so grateful for Gilian and his wife, they spent a day and a half helping me … you can see the generosity of people.” Rossilli, 85, died in her car outside her home on Jan. 7 after deciding to stay put with her pets, the L.A. Times reported. Fay Vahdani, the director of a company that provided in-home care to Rossilli, told NBC News that they urged her to evacuate, but she did not want to leave her dog, two parrots and canary behind. “She was such a sweet little lady,” Vahdani told the L.A. Times, “very pleasant, full of life.” McClendon was a 59-year-old who lived next door to her brother Zaire Calvin. He and his cousin found her remains in the rubble, according to “60 Minutes.” The siblings were separated when Calvin tried to get his wife, baby and mother to safety, he told the news program. “Everybody’s yelling, ‘Get out,’” Calvin said. “I’m thinking that she’s getting out. And the next day after the storm, I come back and her car’s still there. So at that point, in my brain, my soul is shaking.” Five of Calvin’s family members lived on that block. “60 Minutes” reported that four of them lost their homes. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
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