Arrest made in Palisades fire, sources say

"The leading theory has held that the fire was a rekindling of an earlier fire that broke out Jan. 1 in the same location. Experts speculated that winds restarted the fire Jan. 7, burning thousands of homes and killed a dozen people. The first fire, called the Lachman fire, was reported about 12:17 a.m. on New Year's Day in the hillside above Pacific Palisades by a resident whose home is about two blocks from the popular Skull Rock trail. Sources with knowledge of the investigation who were not authorized to speak publicly told The Times that the Lachman fire appeared to have been sparked by fireworks."

"Water-dropping helicopters initially were not able to fly because of the wind, according to the agency, but around 1:40 a.m. they began launching an aerial attack with support crews on the ground. News footage captured the charge, with walls of flames towering over homes and firefighters with hoses running into backyards. Shortly after 3:30 a.m., Los Angeles Fire Department officials reported they had stopped forward progress of the blaze."

Authorities have arrested a suspect in connection with the Palisades fire after a nine-month investigation. The blaze killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes, and investigators believe it was a rekindling of an earlier New Year's Day fire. Experts speculated that winds restarted the fire on Jan. 7 after the initial Jan. 1 Lachman fire, which was reported about 12:17 a.m. above Pacific Palisades near the Skull Rock trail and appeared to have been sparked by fireworks. Water-dropping helicopters were initially grounded by wind but later began aerial attacks with support crews on the ground. Los Angeles Fire Department officials reported they had stopped forward progress and later that the fire was fully contained, though crews remained to mop up.

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