USC experts available to comment on 2025 Los Angeles wildfires

Numerous wildfires across Los Angeles County — including the largest wildfire in Los Angeles’ recorded history — are destroying and upending communities across the metro. Even after the fires are contained, the impact to the environment, public health, housing and other areas will continue to be felt for years.

USC experts below are available for comment, subject to availability.

To check on availability, please contact USC Media Relations at uscnews@usc.edu or (213) 740-2215.

Disaster Response, Public Safety & Infrastructure

Thomas Anthony, director of the USC Aviation Safety and Security Program at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, is available to discuss the impacts of wildfires on aviation safety and operations, including how smoke and reduced visibility affect flight paths, airport operations and the overall safety of air travel.

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Bistra Dilkina is an expert on artificial intelligence and machine learning for social good whose research focuses on tackling large-scale challenges such as wildfires. Dilkina is an associate professor of computer science at USC Viterbi and co-director of the USC Center for Artificial Intelligence in Society.

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Najmedin Meshkati is an expert on disaster response and the safety and reliability of critical civil infrastructure systems, including power, telecommunications, transportation and water systems. He is a professor of civil and environmental engineering, industrial systems engineering, and international relations at USC Viterbi.

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Costas Synolakis is an expert on disaster mitigation, emergency management and fire evolution modeling. His research explores the use of technology and real-time simulations to plan for worst-case scenarios, improve evacuation strategies and determine the necessary shelter and disaster relief resources. Synolakis is the Gordon S. Marshall Professor of Engineering Technology and professor of civil and environmental engineering at USC Viterbi.

Environmental Policy & Economics

Monalisa Chatterjee is an expert on wildfire risk and environmental economics whose research combines climate science and policy analysis to develop strategies for reducing risks and improving resilience, particularly among vulnerable communities and urban populations. Chatterjee is an associate professor of environmental studies at USC Dornsife.

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William Deverell is a leading expert on the environmental history of the American West and the founding director of the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West. He oversees the institute’s West on Fire Initiative and also serves as divisional dean for the social sciences and a professor of history, spatial sciences and environmental studies at USC Dornsife.

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Adam Rose is an expert on the economics of natural and human-caused hazards, including wildfires. He is a research professor at the USC Price School of Public Policy and director emeritus of the USC Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Threats and Emergencies (CREATE). Rose has also worked as the lead economist for the U.S. Geological Survey’s disaster scenarios project and as the lead researcher for a report on the benefits of FEMA hazard mitigation grants.

Health & Medicine

Richard Castriotta is a pulmonary critical care and sleep medicine specialist with Keck Medicine of USC and a professor of clinical medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Castriotta can discuss the health impacts of wildfire smoke and other airborne toxins on respiratory health.

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Brett Feldman is the director and co-founder of USC Street Medicine and an associate professor of family medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to talk about the impacts of the fires and their aftermath on unsheltered people.

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Parveen Garg is a cardiologist with Keck Medicine of USC and associate professor of clinical medicine, and population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to discuss heart-related health issues associated with smoke exposure including increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.

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Rima Habre, associate professor of population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the Spatial Sciences Institute at USC Dornsife, is an expert on wildfire smoke and its effect on air quality and health impacts, as well as climate change.

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Kevin Hur is an otolaryngologist with Keck Medicine of USC and assistant professor of clinical otolaryngology – head and neck surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to discuss sinus-related health impacts of wildfire smoke and other airborne toxins.

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Steven Siegel is chief mental health and wellness officer for Keck Medicine of USC and professor of psychiatry and the behavioral sciences, population and public health sciences, neurological surgery and biomedical engineering at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to discuss managing stress amid evacuations and loss of homes.

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Constantino Sioutas is an expert on air pollution and its health effects, especially on the elderly and after wildfires. His recent research focuses on pollutants produced by biomass combustion and their toxicity, as well as the use of air purifiers to protect against air pollutants, including wildfire emissions. Sioutas is the Fred Champion Professor and a professor of civil and environmental engineering, aerospace and mechanical engineering at USC Viterbi.

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Haig Yenikomshian is a reconstructive plastic surgeon with Keck Medicine of USC and associate professor of clinical surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to discuss the treatment of burns and short- and long-term wound care.

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Bing Zhang is a gastroenterologist with Keck Medicine of USC and assistant professor of clinical medicine, and molecular microbiology and immunology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is available to discuss gut-related issues related to contaminated water exposure.

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