News | CBS News | October 2025

Homeowners trying to rebuild after Altadena’s Eaton Fire face concerns over lead levels in soil

Altadena, California — Armed with a spoon and sandwich bags, Gilien Silsby, a lifelong resident of Altadena, California, a Los Angeles suburb, digs up some of the land she’s called home for decades to be tested for toxins. 

Three generations of her family lost homes in January to the devastating Eaton Fire in Altadena, which, along with the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, claimed more than 30 lives and destroyed more than 16,000 homes in the L.A. area.