Blue wonder

This VW Bulli defied the flames in California

Everything around it has burned down - but the blue and white van survived the flames unscathed.

(Bild: APA/Associated Press)

More than 12,000 buildings were damaged in the devastating fires in California. 29-year-old Megan Krystle Weinraub thought she had not only lost her home in the flames, but also her beloved 1977 VW Bulli. But a picture taken by a reporter showed a small miracle: the blue and white van is apparently intact.

"There's magic in this van," Preston Martin (25), previous owner and business partner of Weinraub, told AP. "It makes no sense why this happened. It should have been roasted, but that's the way it is." In the midst of burnt-out villas, the car is apparently the only thing far and wide that the flames have spared. On one side, it only looks as if the windows are sooty, says Martin. 

Megan Krystle Weinraub with her beloved VW bus, which she called Azul

(Bild: AP)

The young man had bought and renovated the vehicle while he was at university and even lived in it for a while. Last summer, he finally sold the car, which was affectionately christened "Azul", to his 29-year-old business partner, who manufactures surfboards and skateboards. On January 5, they parked the van near the Getty villa - as Weinraub is still learning to drive a manual gearbox, they had chosen this spot because it is very flat. A happy coincidence, as it turned out a few days later.

"I've never cried over a car before"
When the fire broke out, the couple had to leave the car behind and fled with their dog Bodi in another vehicle. Last Thursday, a neighbor finally showed Weintraub an agency photo showing the van - bright blue and white, it clearly stands out among the burnt wreckage. "I freaked out," she said, "I was in the bathroom screaming." The previous owner, Martin, couldn't believe it either and informed his mother, who also loved the car: "I've never cried over a car before," she wrote to her son.

"It's so cool that it's become such a beacon of hope," Martin told a reporter happily. "Everything around it was destroyed. And then there's this bright blue van." Weinraub has not yet been able to inspect her van in person. The area is still cordoned off. However, the 29-year-old has already received more good news: Her apartment is also said to have survived the flames. 

Weather authority: "Not quite out of the woods yet"
The "Red Flag" warning for the area in Southern California remains in place. "Not quite out of the woods yet", explained the weather authority in Los Angeles on Platform X. The large-scale operation involving almost 17,000 helpers in and around Los Angeles is still ongoing, but the authorities are reporting progress. The Palisades Fire on the western edge of Los Angeles is now 18 percent contained. The "Eaton Fire" near Pasadena and Altadena to the north-east of Los Angeles is 35 percent under control. At least 25 fatalities have been confirmed so far, with more still missing.