Nicole Lapin and her destroyed Pacific Palisades home. Photo:
Nicole Lapin/Instagram
Author and former CNN and CNBC anchor Nicole Lapin, who gave birth to a daughter just weeks ago, shared that she she lost her home amid the Los Angeles wildfires, but that she and her family are safe.
“In the last month, my whole life has been turned upside down,” the New York Times bestselling author said in a video on Instagram, which was shared after her home in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood was destroyed.
Lapin — who gave birth to a baby girl just three weeks ago — is one of more than 150,000 throughout Los Angeles forced to evacuate their homes because of the blazes, which have left at least 24 dead with dozens more still missing.
The finance journalist, 40, was taking care of her newborn when she went to the roof, “saw flames and just left,” according to an emotional clip posted to Instagram.
As she fled her home, Lapin “left with literally nothing,” including no wallet, no ID, no passport, no pictures. But, as she looked down at her daughter in the video, she acknowledged that they ultimately escaped with the “most valuable and most priceless” thing of all: family.
In the caption of her post, Lapin — who said that her “brand new” studio is also likely gone or “inoperable” — went on to share how thankful she has been for the “outpouring of help and support we’ve gotten.”
“I am endlessly and eternally thankful, it’s made all the difference in what is otherwise pure horror. The only priceless things in my life— my daughter, my family, our health— we have, and for that I am truly blessed,” she added.
Nicole Lapin/Instagram
Lapin went on to say that she has not yet returned to the ruins of her home and that her family is currently staying in “temporary housing.”
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Despite the devastation, Lapin said, “I know that I’m luckier than so many. … The friends and the community — I didn’t even realize how deep it was. We didn’t realize.”
“For the first time, I have no words,” she concluded.
Lapin — who hosts the biweekly podcast Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin — ended her post with a promise to her followers that she will use her platform to “ask questions of companies” and “get all of our questions answered” as information about the fires is uncovered in the coming weeks.
“I know that I am lucky — and I am going to pay that forward by sharing all the resources that help me through this process of putting the pieces back together,” wrote Lapin in her caption. “If you lost your home in the fire too, let me know what questions you have, and I’ll work on finding answers for us.”
Click here to learn more about how to help the victims of the L.A. fires.
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