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A heartbreaking homecoming.
Mel Gibson visited the rubble of his $14.5 million Malibu mansion on Wednesday, one week after it was burnt down in the Palisades Fire.
The actor, 69, was escorted through his neighborhood in a firetruck and then surveyed the devastating damage done to his home that he lived in for 15 years.
He was photographed shaking hands with the firefighters and thanked them for for their efforts in battling the multiple blazes.
Gibson, who was dressed in a blue flannel shirt, jeans and a black hat, found an end table in the rubble that he took with him, according to TMZ.
Gibson was joined by a NewsNation reporter and California first responders for a ride-along where they toured the destroyed Los Angeles properties.
The “Mad Max” star asked one of the first responders if they knew that “the reservoir was empty,” to which the firefighter responded that the fire crew ran out of water “fairly quickly.”
“It’s not uncommon for us to lose water in our firefight. It’s just that early in the game was surprising,” the firefighter explained.
Gibson replied, “Because yeah, it wasn’t there. And no one told you? That’s crazy.”
Gibson’s house burnt down last week while he was on Joe Rogan’s podcast.
Ironically, the “Patriot” actor blasted California Gov. Gavin Newsom over his handling of the crisis during his interview with Rogan, 57.
“We were just talking about the wildfire situation and how crazy it is that they spent $24 billion last year on the homeless, and what did they spend on preventing these wildfires?” Rogan, 57, asked.
“Zero,” Gibson replied. “Zip.”
“In 2019, I think Newsom said, you know, ‘I’m going to take care of the forest and maintain the forest’ and do all that kind of stuff,” Gibson said on the podcast. “He didn’t do anything.”
Gibson later spoke to NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” and said he “was kind of ill at ease” while he was doing Rogan’s show because he knew his neighborhood “was on fire.”
“But when I got home, sure enough, it wasn’t there,” he said. “I have never seen a place so perfectly burnt.”
“There was a dozen places or so that were just non-existent. I mean, nothing but a chimney and a few roof tiles, and you dare not walk around for the nails and the whole deal. The vehicles were gone, everything,” Gibson added.
The “Braveheart” star confirmed several neighbors also lost their homes — including fellow actor Ed Harris.
“My place looked like Dresden,” he said. “It’s emotional. You know, I lived there for about 14, 15 years, so it was home to me, and 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, just personal things that I had from over the years, and clothing, and you know, cool stuff.”
Other celebrities who have lost their homes in the wildfires include Eugene Levy, Miles Teller, Paris Hilton, Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Anthony Hopkins, John Goodman, Mandy Moore, Joshua Jackson, Tina Knowles, Milo Ventimiglia, Billy Crystal and Candy Spelling.
As of Thursday morning in LA, the Palisades Fire has killed at least nine people and spread over 23,000 acres. It is 22% contained so far.
English (US)