Over 20,000 acres have been destroyed by the fire, which was one of eight that were burning throughout the Los Angeles County, though firefighters have now put out three of them.
Additionally, it has destroyed more than 5,000 homes and businesses; according to Sky News, it was the “biggest” to yet.
Although authorities believe that the Kenneth fire, which threatens homes near Calabasas and Hidden Hills, was purposeful, strong winds and a lack of rain are said to have made the fires worse. A guy was arrested on suspicion of arson after people reportedly held him until police arrived.
As the infernos continue to wreak havoc on Los Angeles, a number of celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Anna Faris, Eugene Levy, and Billy Crystal, have lost their homes in recent days.
When a local contractor emailed him a video of smoke and flames ripping through the street on Tuesday, January 7, the retired waste-management tycoon assumed his three-story house, which was empty at the time, was doomed.
“[The contractor] was watching the news reports and saw my neighbor’s house going down and told me, ‘It looks like your house is going too’,” Steiner stated to the New York Post.
People then started contacting the New Orleans business tycoon to let him know that his “house was all over the news,” but not for the reason he had anticipated.
The mansion was observed towering tall opposite to its devastated neighbors, like a phoenix emerging from the ashes.
“I started getting pictures and realised we had made it through,” Steiner continued. “My wife sent me something this morning that said, ‘Last house standing’. And it brought a pretty big smile to my face at a pretty bad time.”
He believes that the 4,200-square-foot, four-bedroom house’s design, which he describes as “built like a cruise ship,” is what made it withstand the destructive fire.
“It has an ‘ultra-sturdy construction’ and was built to withstand earthquakes,” the father of three said.
“It’s stucco and stone with a fireproof roof,” Steiner explained, while adding that it also boasts pilings ‘like 50 feet into the bedrock’ which keep it steady when strong waves crash in.
“To be totally honest with you, I never in a million years thought a wildfire would jump to the Pacific Coast Highway and start a fire,” Steiner said. “I thought, ‘If we ever have an earthquake, this would be the last thing to go’. I honestly didn’t think that if we had a fire, this would be the last thing to go. And it was.“
“The architecture is pretty nice. But the stucco and fireproof roof are real nice.”
He knows that he is one of the fortunate people in Los Angeles at the moment, even if he is grateful that his mansion escaped the fire.
Since Steiner bought the pad after two of his sons were already enrolled in nearby schools, his home was not the permanent abode of his family.
Hesaid: “I was getting texts from people saying, ‘We’re praying for you. It’s so horrible’. I said, ‘Don’t pray for me; what I lost is material goods.’ I lost a property, but others lost their homes. I didn’t have my family’s memories there. It wasn’t my family home. My heart goes out to those who lost their homes.”
The billionaire stated that even though he had insurance, it will only “cover 50% for a wildfire” and that he thinks his estate will have sustained some smoke damage.