Milo Ventimiglia opens up about the destruction of his home in Malibu, California, which was destroyed during the fire in Los Angeles.
The This is us star, 47, spoke with CBS Evening News on the Thursday, Jan. 9, show about how his and his wife Jarah Mariano’s home burned in the Palisades fire. Mariano is nine months pregnant with their first child.
The couple evacuated their home on Tuesday, January 7. They grabbed everything they could, but Ventimiglia told CBS News that everything in their baby’s nursery was destroyed. They later watched the flames engulf their home through security cameras.
“I think there’s a kind of shocking moment where you go, ‘Oh, this is real. This is happening,’ he said, watching footage of their home burning. “Then, at a certain point, we just turn it off. It’s like, ‘What? What’s worth continuing to watch?’ … We kind of accepted the loss.”
Milo Ventimiglia and Jarah Mariano.
Jon Kopaloff/Getty; Jarah Mariano/Instagram
“You start thinking about all the memorabilia in different parts of the house and whatnot,” Ventimiglia said. “And then you see your neighbors’ houses and everything, kind of around, and your heart just breaks.”
“We have good friends, we have good people to work with, and we will pay off. We will charge. The wife, the baby and the dog are the most important,” he said.
Celebrities who lost their homes or had to evacuate due to the Los Angeles fire and what they said
The actor who is known for his role in This is us as Jack Pearson also commented on how his recent circumstances mirrored his character’s fate. In the series, Jack dies of smoke inhalation after the Pearson family home burns down.
“I haven’t forgotten, life imitates art,” Ventimiglia said of the stark similarities.
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Palisades Fire January 9, 2025
DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty
Before and after photos show the sudden devastation of wildfires in LA
After the episode aired in 2018, he said Diversity how impressive it was to film such a traumatic scene.
“There was fire right in front of me. As I stood a few paces away from it, there were times when the hiss of a gas fire line—it’s a kind of high-pitched whine—would be completely overpowered by the result of real fire, which is deep, roaring, and angry, and something that we hope many, many people will never have to face,” he said.
Ventimiglia later became an advocate for fire safety. As a result of the recent wildfires, Ventimiglia said he is now interested in advocating for wildfire safety.
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More than 100,000 residents are under evacuation orders as of Thursday, Jan. 9, due to the Eaton Fire and the Palisades Fire. City officials reported five fatalities on Wednesday, although the exact number has yet to be determined.
Many residents, including celebrities, were forced to leave their homes. PEOPLE reported that names include Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Anna Faris, Cobie Smulders and Taran Killam, John Goodman, Jamie Chung and Bryan Greenberg and Jennifer Gray.
Click here to learn more about how to help the victims of the LA fires.
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Source: HIS Education