A Malibu neighborhood fire brigade member who helped save nearly a dozen homes during the Palisades Fire said, while communities can band together to save property during natural disasters, more needs to be done by California officials to curb wildfires.
Matt Diamond, a local surfer, formed the brigade in his neighborhood following the 2018 Woolsey Fire - which scorched nearly 100,000 acres of land, claimed three lives and forced nearly 300,000 people to evacuate - because of what he described as a need to become "self-sustaining firefighters."
"We didn't have any fire support for that one, and it was kind of all the Malibu residents who had to band together," Diamond told Fox News Digital. "We stayed and the city manager wouldn't allow resources in, so we had to vote on provisions. We had axes, shovels, firefighting equipment, and food and water boated into Paradise Cove, and we set up a makeshift camp. We became fully operational and started patrolling the neighborhood, doing spot-fire checks and saving neighbors' homes."
Now, he said, the Los Angeles Fire Department sees the brigade as a vital resource in saving homes and managing fires, because firefighters who are sent in from other locations don't know the area.
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When the fires ignited on Tuesday, Diamond followed fire trucks toward Sunset and Pacific Coast Highway, and noticed the fire coagulating in the Palisades. He traveled back to Malibu, and met the flames at Tuna Canyon, he said.
"It was dark, and [the wildfire] was moving about a quarter mile every 30 minutes," he said. "I was with the brigade, and it was just taking everything in his path."
He traveled home and packed up his belongings, which included a number of surfboards.
"I've been big wave surfing on a somewhat professional level, and I have a big contest coming up, so I needed these boards," Diamond said. "I've been working really hard and these are some of the best shaped boards in the world. I took them all to the beach, along with my drum sets and music equipment, and then I went home and the fire came right through my house, all around it. It was an amazing sight - talk about an immersive experience."
Diamond started to help protect his home and his neighborhood, alongside Santa Barbara firefighters. He said he helped "convince" them to save his place.
The next morning, everything was still ablaze. He said many of his friends from the Palisades lost their homes that evening.
"All my big musician friends, in some of the biggest bands in the world, lost all their Grammys," he said. "The biggest like producers in the world that have done the biggest projects, from music to TV and film, that have the most amazing memorabilia you've ever seen. It's just gone. I was just watching it. Beautiful things framed from The Beatles, the craziest 60s Woodstock-era memorabilia - all gone."
While the brigade saved about 10 homes, Diamond said the domino effect is the most important part - saving one house could save the surrounding four as well.
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The City of Malibu confirmed in a statement on Thursday that a resident died in the Palisades Fire.
"This is a painful reminder of the profound impact this fire is having on our community," officials wrote. "Malibu is more than a city - we are neighbors, friends, and family. Even when we don’t know someone’s name, their loss is felt by all of us. In times like this, we must come together, support one another, and show the resilience that defines our community…"
Diamond encouraged every community to contact local first responders and establish communication with officials.
Creating the community's own communication line with walkie-talkies and satellite radio phones can also be highly beneficial in times of crisis, he said.
"You get the proper outfits and training, gear up, and you're ready to save your community," Diamond said. "We're only going to have more natural disasters. It's just going to continuously happen. It's climate evolution, and it's here to stay and only grow. Might as well educate yourself and be armed to help your community. It's very empowering, and it's necessary."
Growing up, he remembered seeing a lot of brush fires. He remembered forestry and fire management creating fire lines.
While acknowledging that sometimes prescribed burns can get out of control, Diamond said they are needed to protect the whole.
"[The government is] kind of gun-shy, in a sense, to do what's properly needed," he said. "Say two homes burn and [the government] gets sued by two people, versus 1,000 homes [gone] because you didn't do these controlled burns. The governor [Gavin Newsom] needs to attack this, because everyone's pretty much at their mercy. Cut through the bureaucracy of it and just do what needs to be done."
