Hollywood actress calls LA fires 'a disaster', says elected officials aren't doing enough

Hollywood actress Elizabeth Chambers believes the government did not do enough during the Los Angeles fires.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Chambers, 42, was asked if she believed city officials were doing everything they could to contain the Los Angeles fires.

"I think it's a disaster," she said. "I don't think anyone was prepared. I think it was on a scale that no one expected."

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Elizabeth Chambers tells Fox News Digital what she held on to when she and her children had to evacuate during the Los Angeles fires. (Photo by Philippe Faraone/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)

Chambers shared her thoughts on billionaire real estate developer and former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso.

"And then Caruso saved the Village of Palisades... You can be involved in politics or you can't be involved in politics. But, at the end of the day, he had as much time as anyone else to prepare... I mean, it It’s strange not to be affected.”

WATCH: Elizabeth Chambers calls LA fires 'a disaster' and says not enough is being done

"Music is still playing in Palisade Village as if this is Disneyland and everything around is destruction. So, do I think these measures were taken appropriately and quickly enough? Absolutely not."

Caruso unsuccessfully ran for mayor against Karen Bass in 2022. He previously said the Palisades fire that reduced millions of dollars' worth of real estate to ash and knocked out water supplies represented "absolute mismanagement by the city."

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Rick Caruso blasts the lack of water in the Palisades. (Getty Images)

As the fire raged, Caruso told Fox 11 Los Angeles: "There was no water in the Palisade. There was no water in the hydrants. It was definitely city mismanagement. It wasn't the firefighters' fault, it was the city's fault."

On January 7, deadly fires broke out in the Los Angeles area. Tens of thousands of residents had their homes and businesses destroyed and were forced to flee their homes. Officials said on Thursday that more than 30 people were still missing and two more people had died, bringing the death toll to 27.

"So, do I think these measures were taken appropriately and quickly enough? Absolutely not."

— Elizabeth Chambers

Firefighters watch a helicopter fight the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon, Los Angeles, on January 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Chambers detailed the moment she had to evacuate, immediately packing up her and her children's personal belongings.

"I took our passports. I took the birth certificates. I took pictures like this around the house...older family pictures," she explained to Fox News Digital. “I was just packing for a few nights.”

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Chambers said that when she evacuated, she "took our passports. I took birth certificates. I took pictures like that...around the house...old family photos." (Morgan Lieberman/FilmMagic/Getty Images)

The TV personality, who has two children with ex-husband Armie Hammer, shared how she explains California's tragic fires to her younger children, daughter Harper, 10, and son Ford, 7 .

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"I think when it comes to parenting, you have to be the captain of the plane... If the captain panics, the passengers will panic. That's how I approach parenting in general," she told Fox News Digital.

Chambers has two children, daughter Harper, 10, and son Ford, 7, with ex-husband Armie Hammer. (Paul Brunoggi/Patrick McMullan)

"But if the pilot of the plane doesn't panic and say everything is fine, and you know you're about to crash, then you don't trust the pilot either. So, you know, it's about transparency. It's about having a really honest conversation and reassurance.

"You can say a lot of people are losing their homes right now. We have everything that matters. We are a family no matter what. We are healthy, we are together. We will always have a place to live, and that's all you can say, ” she pointed out.

WATCH: Elizabeth Chambers raises funds for LA fires with charity cupcakes

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Chambers is helping to raise funds for victims of the California fires through her charity, Cupcake for a Cause.

The Bird Bakery owner will donate 100% of proceeds from the Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes through February 1 to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

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"Over the past nearly 13 years in business, we have consistently created CUPCAKE FOR A CAUSE™️ to benefit the many tragedies and events within our community and beyond," Chambers' company posted on Instagram earlier this week. This time is no exception."

"My children and I have been evacuated for the past seven days and we are still praying that our house is safe, but we are lucky. This has truly been the most unimaginably devastating blow to so many people and it's something we disaster." There is an opportunity to help. "

"It's a vanilla cake with folded strawberry slices and lemon butter buttercream," Chambers told Fox News Digital. "We've sold quite a few over the past few days and the money goes directly to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation ”

The flavor makes sense, she noted, because 90 percent of strawberries grown in the U.S. come from California and "we're turning lemons into lemonade."

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Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

Stephanie Giang-Paunon is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to stephanie.giang@fox.com and on Twitter: @SGiangPaunon.