After their lives were upended last year, they’re finally regaining their footing – but memories of the fires still haunt them

Few among the nearly 10 million people who live in Los Angeles county were left untouched by last year’s disastrous firestorm. Driven by strong winds through parched vegetation, multiple fires exploded in quick succession last January, and devoured roughly 16,000 structures on all sides of LA.

Thirty-one lives were lost and thousands more were for ever changed. For many, a new chapter of the disaster began to unfold when the flames were extinguished, while the slow road to recovery started to take shape in the year that followed.

Son of director Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner will now be represented by public defender in murder case

The arraignment of Nick Reiner, who faces two counts of first-degree murder in the killing of his parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, was delayed on Wednesday after his attorney asked to be replaced.

Judge Theresa McGonigle agreed to postpone the proceedings until February in response to a request from attorney Alan Jackson to withdraw from the case. The judge assigned a public defender to represent Nick Reiner, who had been expected to be arraigned and enter a plea in a Los Angeles court on Wednesday.

A year after the Eaton fire, residents returning to Altadena confront lingering contamination and little official clarity

One year on from the Eaton fire, long after the vicious winds that sent embers cascading from the San Gabriel mountains and the flames that swallowed entire streets, a shadow still hangs over Altadena.

Construction on new properties is under way, and families whose homes survived the fire have begun to return. But many are grappling with an urgent question: is it safe to be here?