KBUU thanks its team of engineers: Josh Bohn, Mike Hutchens, Diane Laetz, Mike Worrell and Jim Toten.  Our producer is Diane Laetz.

Some Residents Protest EPA Transfer Station At Topanga Beach

Some residents from the Malibu area plan a protest at the EPA Hazardous Waste transfer station site … at the eastern gateway to Malibu. 

They are unhappy that … with no advance notice … the EPA will be using the burned -down Malibu Ranch Motel site as a temporary collection site … where hazardous burned material will be loaded into large trucks for shipment to hazmat dumps in the desert.

A similar protest is making lots of noise in the San Gavbriel Valley … near the Eaton Fire.

Carolyn Day is one of several Topanga and Malibu residents who plan a protest today.

CAROLYN DAY

“The community was not involved. We did not get to give input. It’s a native American sacred burial site where there is artifacts that have been found.

“And it’s next to a really pristine watershed and creek and lagoon.”

That audio is from ABC 7.

California State parks owns the site.

They have plans to bulldoze it … to remove the top layer of soil and ship it off to the desert. 

There was some talk about preserving the old motor Court… Which sits on dirt that had been a hillside that was bulldozed into Topanga Lagoon 100 years ago.

The EPA promises that all of the hazmat will be sealed up tight before it arrives at Topanga Lagoon… And they promised to put plastic down to prevent any possible contamination.

A similar operation was done at Lahaina … the fire disaster in Hawaii that was only about 1/6 size of the Palisades fire.

EPA was able to successfully remove the hazmat and clear out within 115 days in Hawaii.

We have scoured the Internet and cannot find any news of any leaks at the EPA operation in Lahaina.

Caltrans’ Top Official Gives Non-Answers To County Supervisor About Extent of PCH Cliff Damage, Or When Hwy 1 Can Reopen

For three weeks … KBUU News has been asking Caltrans the most obvious questions about Pacific Coast Highway.

What is the extent of the damage from the Palisades Fire??? 

How bad is the damage to the wooden supports that buttress the highway linking Malibu to the freeway???

And when will it be fixed.

Those are obvious questions … but Caltrans has refused to answer them.

Now … county supervisor Lindsey Horvath has post the same questions to Caltrans.

And Caltrans didn’t answer her either.

In a letter sent to Caltrans 10 days ago… Horvath said, providing residence with a clear and expedited timeline for when the road can be reopened is vital.

She noted that state Route One… And state Route 27 up Topanga Canyon… are both critical for cleanup and haul out of debris.

Caltrans has not sent anyone to any of the community meetings about the fire.   And the state agency has stonewalled reporter’s questions about any tentative assessments of damage to the 100-year-old cement or wooden cribbing that kept cliffs from falling onto the highway. 

Horvath asked Caltrans … point blank… what is your “plan and ambitious timeline for the complete reopening of the Pacific Coast Highway and Topanga Canyon Boulevard?”

The answer came from all the way at the top of Caltrans… state Transportation Secretary Tony Tavares.

Says he … well … Tavares did not answer that question. 

Tavares says the state “has begun assessments of the impact, which found damaged, retaining walls, slopes, guard, rails drainage, and other structures.

Here is the rest of Tavares’ reply … as voiced by another KBUU reporter.

  70902 TAVARES SR1

“The damage on the slopes along state Route One is not limited to state property. 

“There are several walls throughout the burn area above PCH that are on private property. 

“In some cases, these walls provide support to state Route One. 

“Until this debris is removed, the condition of the walls cannot be fully determined. 

And that  debris removal has not yet started.

Video shot during the fire showed wooden walls above PCH … some of them 100 years old … were aflame.  Other walls, made of concrete poured 100 years ago, had been toasted and look like they buckled.

They sit directly above PCH. 

Tavares says … they have not yet begun to look at the remaining wooden cliffs … which in some cases support streets and houses … to see how to prevent them from falling onto PCH. 

TAVARES TWO

“We can visually monitor the pavement near the walls by looking for any indication that they are moving or have failed. 

“Caltrans is working on obtaining permission to fly a drone along the coast as another way to monitor some of these walls. 

“Walls are on private property, Caltrans is in discussions with property owners to expedite the owners repair plans.”

What Tavares did not say in his statement … Caltrans has been in discussion with the owners of those walls for years.

The retaining walls above PCH near Getty Villa have been in a state of failure for years … and Caltrans has been unable to reach an agreement with the landowners to come up with a plan. 

At Porto Marina … mud has been oozing onto the pavement for years … eventually closing one lane of westbound PCH for months. 

It took a half year for Caltrans to come up with a temporary repair … they moved the traffic lanes out towards the ocean … but did nothing to prevent the hillside from tumbling onto the new highway alignment.

With winter rains approaching. … and with bare cliffs consisting of unsupported dirt walls … we suggest that the need to protect Malibu’s link to the outside freeway system is urgent. 

CPUC Okays First Of Two Votes To Transfer $7 Billion In Fire Costs From SCE Stockholders To Ratepayers

The California Public Utilities Commission yesterday decided to increase Southern California Edison rates to pay for damages that the power company caused in the deadly Thomas fire of 2017

Yet to come… an expected second rate hike to pay for other damages caused by the Woolsey fire.

Add them up … and Edison ratepayers will pay more than 7 billion dollars in damages from the two fires … costs of the electric monopoly’s admitted negligence in both both fires.

About two thirds of the costs will be borne by ratepayers … system wide. 

The investors who make a 6 percent profit 

2.7 billion dollars has been paid out by Edison paid to more than 5,000 victims of the Thomas fire.

1.6 billion dollars of that will be covered by its customers. 

The rest will be paid by shareholders of the for-profit company.

The company has a second proposal, still pending, to shift $5.4 billion of costs from the 2018 Woolsey fire to customers.

State investigators say Edison’s faulty equipment and negligent maintenance sparked both fires. 

With no discussion, the commission approved the rate hike by a 4-0 vote.

After the vote, seven Democratic state legislators sent a letter to the commission, saying the action harmed customers and failed to hold Edison accountable.

Malibu state Senator Ben Allen wrote the letter. 

He says Malibu “has already suffered the consequences of utility failure by being forced to endure power outages, property destruction, and displacement.

“It is reprehensible to require these same consumers to assume the financial responsibility for corporate mismanagement and infrastructure deficiencies.”

Owner Of STR Is Shocked, Shocked To Find Out An Illegal College Party Was Held There, Sues TripAdvisor For Renting It Out

Four years ago … a 22-year-old college student burned to death in a fire … in an overnight rental on Rambla Pacifico in Malibu.

Turns out … the house had been rented for a birthday party for a college kid from San Diego named Grant Schneider.

The 22 year old burned to death … according to a new lawsuit … when a floating paper lantern caused flames to spread in the rented house. 

There were no fire detectors or sprinklers in the overnight rental. 

The owner of the Rambla Pacifico mansion has just filed a $50 million lawsuit against booking-company Tripadvisor and the party organizer … a woman named Holly Seller.

Erin Hughes says TripAdvisor and Holly Seller failed to exercise due care.

Seller allegedly allowed more guests than allowed for an event that featured potentially risky sky lanterns.

The lawsuit also alleges that sheriff’s deputies had to be called because of “rambunctious behavior” after hours that included loud noise and the use of sky lanterns.

Schneider’s father, Brad Schneider, has filed lawsuit of his own.

He says the home rented out by Erin Hughes had an inadequate number of smoke detectors and/or smoke detectors that were inoperable.

SM School Board Schedules Next Meeting For Malibu, After Being Scolded For Lack Of Generators

The Santa Monica school board will move its next school board meeting from the district office to Malibu High School.

This came after some Malibu residents said they were furious that the board spent 90 minutes discussing the lack of generators and other problems Malibu Schools … a discussion that was held 90 minutes away in Santa Monica.

Public comment will be accepted in person or Zoom.

The agenda and Zoom information for the February 6th meeting will be posted on the District website.

https://www.smmusd.org/domain/2977

Regency Theater in Agoura Hills To Be Replaced With Housing, The Last Picture Show is Thursday

One of the last movie theaters operating near Malibu will close for good in nine days.

The Regency Theater … near the 101 Freeway at Kanan Road … will be torn down and replaced by a large multistory residential development.

278 housing units … on top of a large parking garage … will replace part of the strip mall near the interchange … at the corner of Agoura and Cornell roads. 

The Regency Theater has been the hime for the Malibu Film Society …. Since the city of Malibu kicked it out of the local church and synagogue where it had been showing movies for the Malibu industry figures and general public. 

Director Scott Tallal says the Malibu Film Society will move eight miles east … to the Calabasas Commons theater.

93 People Killed In Plane Crash Of Pt Mugu, 25 Years Ago Today

America is watching the sad details of a horrific plane crash near Washington. 

It was 25 years ago .. tonight  … that 93 people were killed in a jet crash into the ocean just west of Malibu.

KCLU’s Lance Orozco recounts the Alaska Airlines crash … just up the road. 

70904 CRASH LANCE 

 

https://www.kclu.org/2025-01-30/sad-remembrance-its-the-25th-anniversary-of-a-jetliner-crash-off-port-hueneme-which-took-88-lives

From Hueneme To Waukesha: 47 Dogs Evacuated To Wisconsin

In news from ups the coast … a transport plane loaded with 37 dogs departed from the Camarillo Airport tow days ago… heading to Waukesha Wisconsin. 

Overcrowded conditions at Ventura County’s animal shelters prompted volunteers to load the dogs into containers and then a  specially modified plane operated by Wings of Rescue.

The transport plane took the dogs to the Humane Animal Welfare Society shelter in Waukesha County. 

The dogs had to meet certain criteria including a no-bite record, up-to-date vaccinations and input from the Wisconsin facility.

The Ventura County animal shelters are at 142 percent of capacity.

Good news!  Plus it lets us say Waukesha on the radio.