\nA raging wildfire tore through a quiet Altadena neighborhood, leaving heartbreak and loss in its wake \u2014 among the vic:tims, a beloved grandfather who refused to leave the home he cherished for decades.\n
An 83-year-old man, Rodney Nickerson, was found de:ad in his bed after the Eaton Fire ravaged his neighborhood in Altadena, California. His daughter, Kimiko Nickerson, discovered his b0dy amid the charred remains of their family home, which had stood since the late 1960s.\n
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The devastating wildfire broke out on Tuesday night (January 7, 2025), spreading rapidly near Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive, about three miles from the Nickerson home. Despite repeated pleas from his family and neighbors to evacuate, Rodney insisted on staying in the home he had lived in for over five decades.\n
Kimiko shared that the last conversation she had with her father was around 9:30 p.m. on the night of the fire. He had assured her, saying, “I’ll be here tomorrow.”\n
Kimikso’s son and neighbors also tried to persuade Rodney to leave, but he remained firm in his decision to stay. “He said he’ll be fine,” Kimiko recounted. She believes he was preparing to go to bed after their call, sticking to his lifelong habit of waking up at 4 a.m., even in retirement.\n
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Rodney had deep ties to the Los Angeles community, having purchased their Altadena family home in 1968 for just $5. His legacy in the area extended beyond his lifetime \u2014 his great-grandfather, William Nickerson, founded Nickerson Gardens, the largest public housing development in Los Angeles.\n
Rodney spent 45 years working as a project engineer for Lockheed Martin, a major aerospace and defense company. His wife, who also worked at Lockheed, shared in building the family’s life in Altadena, raising their children in the same home that Rodney refused to abandon.\n
The rapid spread of the Eaton Fire took residents by surprise. According to Sky News, Kimiko described her father’s confidence that the blaze would not reach his property. Tragically, he misjudged the fire’s erratic and devastating path.\n
“He just didn’t want to evacuate,” Kimiko said, reflecting on her father’s decision. “He’s been living here since 1968, and he’s been in Altadena my whole life.”\n
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The fire cut through the quiet suburban neighborhood at an alarming rate, jumping across streets and causing significant destruction. “Like all of us on this block, in four blocks, he didn’t think it was going to be this devastating,” Kimiko shared. “It jumped whole streets, and it hit this community, but it didn’t touch the mountainside at all.”\n
In the aftermath, Kimiko expressed the overwhelming grief and disbelief that she and her family are facing. “I have no words to explain my feelings at this point in time,” she said. “I’m just silent and numb and just mentally trying to go through the process.”\n
The Nickerson family is not alone in their grief. The Eaton Fire continues to leave a trail of heartbreak across Altadena and neighboring areas. On January 9, 2025, KTLA 5 reported on the death of a 66-year-old man named Victor Shaw, who was identified on Wednesday morning (January 8) as one of the five victims claimed by the Eaton Fire.\n
Tragically, Victor’s family found him lying on the side of the road by their home, with a garden hose in his hand. The fire victim’s loved ones also confirmed that Victor lost his life attempting to defend their home against the flames.\n
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Adding another layer of sorrow is the fact that Victor’s sister, Shari Shaw, who he had been living with, had tried to get her brother to evacuate with her on the evening of January 7, as the fire got closer to their location.\n
Reportedly, Victor, whose loved ones say he had health issues impacting his mobility, had told Shari he wanted to stay behind to try to combat the fire when she was running out the door.\n
Providing a first-person account of the moment to the news outlet, Shari divulged, “When I went back in and yelled out his name, he didn’t reply back, and I had to get out because the embers were so big and flying like a firestorm \u2013 I had to save myself. And I looked behind me, and the house was starting to go up in flames, and I had to leave.”\n
Al Tanner, a family friend, said they found Victor’s charred body the following morning. According to Al, “It looks like he was trying to save the home that his parents had for almost 55 years.”\n
Expressing her devastation to KTLA 5, Shari said she “fell to the ground” upon learning of her brother’s death, and noted how she was even unable to look at him. “They just told me that he was lying on the ground and that he looked serene, as if he was at peace,” added the bereaved sister.\n
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Victor’s body was still left on his family’s property in the 3000 block of Montrose Avenue on Wednesday evening due to unsafe conditions prohibiting the coroner’s office from retrieving him.\n
The cause of the 10,600-acre Eaton Fire that claimed Victor’s life has remained under investigation since Thursday morning (January 9), and is one of many active and large wildfires to erupt in the Los Angeles area.\n
According to KTLA 5, the Palisades Fire is the largest of the lot, spanning a whopping 17,234 acres and having destroyed approximately 1,000 structures.\n
Meanwhile, the 855-acre Hurst Fire ravaged the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sylmar, while the Lidia Fire damaged at least 348 acres in the Antelope Valley, forcing evacuations as well.\n
Outside of the aforementioned four, another fire called the Sunset Fire (43 acres) forced rapid evacuations in the Hollywood Hills. However, first responders have managed to make progress concerning relief and rescue efforts for this fire.\n
Regarding the current status of the active wildfires in Los Angeles (L.A.), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) shared an update on the department’s website.\n
All appear to have increased in acreage \u2014 the Palisades fire is now 19,978 acres with a containment level of 6%; Eaton now spans 13,690 acres with 0% containment; Hurst’s acreage is 771 with 37% containment, and Lidia sits at a containment level of 75%, spanning 394 acres.\n
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Additionally, CAL FIRE has listed information on another one called the Kenneth Fire, which spans 960 acres and has a containment level of 0%.\n
“Following recent rainfall that has moderated fire activity, CAL FIRE is transitioning to Winter Preparedness staffing levels statewide. This adjustment aligns with a seasonal decrease in fire activity and aims to strategically optimize resources as fire risks lessen during the cooler months,” reports the department.\n
They also acknowledge that while California has experienced “a higher-than-usual number of fires this year,” the total acreage burned is still slightly below the five-year average. However, CAL FIRE admits that this figure has exceeded the figures of last year (2024).\n
Additionally, the department forecasts that below-normal precipitation and above-average temperatures will persist through February 2025, which, unfortunately, will sustain an elevated risk of fires, especially in Southern California.\n
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