Jimmy Kimmel is moved by the community support and commitment of first responders amid a dark period in Los Angeles history defined by devastating wildfires and immense loss.
Returning to his late-night TV show on Monday, Kimmel delivered an emotional opening monologue about the “very scary, very stressful, very strange week here in Los Angeles.” Several fires broke out across Southern California last week, fueled by a “life-threatening and destructive storm.” The most devastating fires, in Pacific Palisades and Altadena, continue to burn and have damaged or destroyed more than 12,000 structures and killed 24 people.
“It's been terrible,” Kimmel said after reflecting on the fires, including the now-extinguished Sunset Fire that threatened his Hollywood studio. “All of us who live in this city know someone, most of us several people (families, friends, colleagues, neighbors) whose houses burned down, and the truth is, we don't even know it's over.”
The last week has been a “disgusting, shocking, horrible experience,” but Kimmel also said a bright spot has been “the beauty of seeing the community come together to support each other.” After briefly rebuking President-elect Donald Trump for criticizing California politicians, Kimmel turned the spotlight on first responders, including inmate teams who have been battling wildfires.
“We should never stop thanking them,” Kimmel said. In addition to local and out-of-state first responders, the Emmy-winning host also praised police, the National Guard, local news reporters and the Watch Duty app.
“Real superheroes,” he added.
Kimmel's opening segment also praised Angelenos who have organized donation drives, businesses who have offered support to affected residents, and “unexpected hero” Steve Guttenberg. Since last week, the “Police Academy” star has remained in his Palisades neighborhood to assist in emergency efforts. Gutenberg told Kimmel that his latest mission included saving a dog and putting out small fires in the area.
Although the fires have brought devastation, Kimmel said, the last week has also been filled with several lessons, including those on firefighting terminology and emergency responses.
“Now I feel like an expert,” he joked. “Before this happened, most of what I knew about fire safety came from watching 'Paw Patrol.'”
The final minutes of Kimmel's 15-minute monologue included a super cut of local coverage highlighting community efforts, including donation drives and free meal services.
On Monday, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The team announced their efforts to give back to those affected by the fires. The production has set up a donation center behind its Hollywood studio, at 6901 Hawthorn Ave. The center will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily through Friday.
Southern California residents should remain vigilant this week as officials expressed concern that a new round of strong winds, coupled with dry fuel and low humidity, could cause new fires to start or existing ones to expand. An unprecedented fourth “particularly dangerous situation” fire weather warning went into effect Tuesday morning and is expected to last through Wednesday, affecting swaths of Los Angeles County and surrounding counties.
“Widespread, destructive, life-threatening winds are already here,” Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said during a news conference Tuesday. “We are taking an aggressive, lean-forward posture…strategically placing fire and engine patrols in unaffected high fire risk areas of the city. “We are carefully managing our operations to ensure we can respond quickly to any new fires.”
Times staff writers Rong-Gon Lin II, Hannah Fry and Grace Toohey contributed to this report.
