6 months later, 12 ways the Eaton and Palisades fires changed Southern California

Eric Swenson was in Altadena last week, in the waning days of his time in the Eaton and Palisades burn zones.

As of Monday, six months will have passed since the twin catastrophes exploded into Southern California reality on Jan. 7. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers colonel who led the ash and debris cleanup paused in the sunshine in front of an empty parcel for the melancholy anniversary.

Six months and four millions tons of fire ash and debris later, Swenson sought a silver lining.