Mel Gibson loses home in Los Angeles wildfires while recording podcast with Joe Rogan
Hollywood actor Mel Gibson has revealed that his home in Malibu burned down during the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles.
As of January 10th, more than a thousand structures had been destroyed, and ten people have died because of the wildfires. The Pacific Palisades area has been particularly hard hit, with nearly 7,000 hectares engulfed in flames with zero containment. More than 180,000 Los Angeles residents have been affected by the destructive wildfires currently tearing through the city, which has caused mass evacuations.
Many figures from the entertainment industry have lost their homes due to the fires, including Mandy Moore, Anthony Hopkins, Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Paris Hilton, and Adam Brody. Now, Gibson has also revealed his home is no more.
“Obviously, it’s kind of devastating. It’s emotional,” Gibson told host Elizabeth Vargas during an interview on NewsNation. “You live there for a long time, and you had all your stuff. You remember George Carlin talking about your stuff? I had my stuff there, and it’s all like, I’ve been relieved from the burden of my stuff, because it’s all in cinders.”
Gibson also revealed he was in Austin, Texas, to record an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience when he discovered that his home had turned to ruins, adding, “I was doing the Rogan podcast… And kind of at ease while we were talking because I knew my neighbourhood was on fire.”
He continued: “So I thought, I wonder if my place is still there. But when I got home, sure enough, it wasn’t there. I went home and I said to myself, well, at least I haven’t got any of those pesky plumbing problems anymore.”
The actor lost many personal possessions due to the wildfire, stating, “I had a lot of personal things there that, you know, I can’t get back…All kinds of stuff, everything from photographs to files to, you know, you know, just personal things that I had from over the years, and clothing, you know, pretty cool stuff, you know, but you know that can all be replaced.”
However, he’s unconcerned about losing these items and relieved that his loved ones are safe, adding, “These are only things. And the good, the good news is that, you know, those in my family and those I love are all well, and we’re all happy and healthy and out of harm’s way, that’s all I can care about, really.”
On January 9th, Jamie Lee Curtis, whose home is in the Pacific Palisades region, pledged to donate $1 million to tackle the wildfire crisis in Los Angeles.
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