Pacific Palisades resident Dave Harvilicz drove to the intersection of Brooktree Road and West Sunset Boulevard on Friday afternoon to catch a glimpse of President Trump’s arrival.
The intersection, blocked off by military humvees and local police, was roughly a mile from the remains of Harvilicz’s home on Mount Holyoke Avenue, one of hundreds destroyed by the Palisades fire.
“We just wanted to thank him for coming and bringing attention [to the fires],” said Harvilicz, 50.
Trump’s visit to Pacific Palisades, and the wreckage left behind by the Jan. 7 firestorm, was somber but carried a hint of excitement for some.
Harvilicz and his 6-year-old son Leo were among a handful of residents who turned out to see the president pass by. They spoke as a helicopter and other military craft flew overhead.
On Jan. 7, Harvilicz and his family fled to a friend’s house in Santa Monica. He said he and his wife had expected to return home within a few days, but that they still haven’t been cleared to enter the property.
“We’re trying to figure out what to do next,” he said, adding that he was given an 18-month estimate just to clear the debris from his home by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday evening.
Trump surveyed the devastation Friday and spoke to some residents who had lost their homes. He said he was stunned by the destruction and vowed to partner with local officials to help victims.
“We have to work together to get this really worked out,” Trump said during a meeting with Los Angeles officials. “I don’t think you can realize how … devastating it is until you see it. It’s incredible. It’s really an incineration.”
Trump sparred a bit with local leaders — many of them Democrats — during the meeting. But he repeatedly vowed to work with them to advance rebuilding efforts.
In advance of the meeting, Trump publicly threatened to withhold federal aid to California in exchange for a change in water management and an implementation of voter identification requirements.
But his tone during the visit was much more subdued. He declared a national emergency, pledged to waive or expedite any federal permits needed for rebuilding, and did not mention specific conditions for federal aid.
Harvilicz said he agrees with tying disaster aid to implementing voter ID in the state. And, personally, he’s hoping Trump can help speed up the recovery process.
Harvilicz hoisted Leo on his shoulders, where the youngster held up a poster featuring a photo of Trump raising his fist in the air after he was shot during a rally in Pennsylvania.
“I hope he saw us,” Harvilicz said.
