Joe Bonamassa has confirmed his collection of vintage guitar gear – one of the largest in the world – has been saved from the Los Angeles wildfires.
News that his collection was at risk emerged yesterday (January 9) after he shared a photo of one of his Nerdville museums, which doubles as one of the world’s largest collections of vintage electric guitar and acoustic guitar gear, amid the city’s ongoing wildfires.
“It’s not in my hands anymore,” he wrote. “A very hard place to be as a curator. It’s my lifetime of work. I knew this day would come eventually but just not today. So far so good tonight but the situation is very fluid.
“A major thanks to the firefighters and first responders for giving it their all these past few days. Stay safe Los Angeles. These are uncertain and unprecedented times.”
The post included an image of the Nerdville sign and what appears to be a selection of his guitars being stored in a garage. As reported by the LA Times, an evacuation zone was enforced around the areas of Laurel Canyon Boulevard, Mulholland Drive and Hollywood Boulevard.
The fires began in Los Angeles on Tuesday (January 7). In a previous post, Bonamassa had shared an image of the city’s skyline alongside the caption: “This is what it looks like when your city is burning. It is like the sky is bruised and battered. I am heartbroken for all the Angelenos who lost their homes overnight.”
Now, however, Bonamassa has confirmed that his collection has been saved from the fires in a newly-shared Instagram video. In the clip, recorded at Nerdville, the guitarist thanks the LA fire department for preventing the spread of fire to the area, before adding: “It’s important to know that as very grateful as I am to be here there’s a lot of people, thousands of people right now that have lost their homes.
“Perspective is everything,” he continued. “So my heart really goes out to the people that have lost everything in the past two days because this has been an unprecedented and unbelievable 48 hours.”
He goes on to thank people for the support, before adding that he’s on a “24-hour watch” at Nerdville. “No looters, no nothing, don’t even try,” he says.
The unprecedented event has seen areas such as the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood and the iconic Sunset Boulevard largely destroyed. At least five fires are being fought by emergency services, with three being reported as unconfined. Over 180,000 people and counting have been evacuated, with five reported deaths.
Jhene Aiko, Beyoncé’s mother Tina Knowles, Billy Crystal and Paris Hilton are among the celebrities that have lost their homes in the fires.
Hilton shared her experience watching her home burn on television. “Heartbroken beyond words” she wrote on Instagram. “Sitting with my family, watching the news, and seeing our home in Malibu burn to the ground on live TV is something no one should ever have to experience. This home was where we built so many precious memories”.
Cary Elwes, best known for starring in The Princess Bride and Saw, wrote on his Instagram account “sadly we did lose our home but we are grateful to have survived this truly devastating fire”.
Oscar-winning actor James Woods broke down in tears during a live TV interview while detailing his evacuation and losing his home. “One day you’re swimming in the pool and the next day it’s all gone” he said. He also broke down recalling his eight-year-old niece’s innocent offer of help. “She came out with her little Yeti piggy bank, for us to rebuild our house” he said while wiping away tears.
A fundraiser for DIIV’s frontman Zachary Cole Smith was launched after his house succumbed to the fires. According to the GoFundMe campaign launched by their friend Lindsey Hartman, Smith and his family are safe but have unfortunately had their house burnt and destroyed in the fires.
Hartman wrote: “Dani is also six months pregnant, making this already horrifying event even more impossible to bear. This home included all of their possessions (clothing, heirlooms, prized possessions) as well as all of Cole’s musical gear, the family car, and all of their baby supplies for Roy and the newborn on the way.”
Musicians like Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande were quick to share links to resources on social media, while others detailed their experiences with evacuation. Others also shared their sympathies with the people affected by the tragedies as thousands of homes, belongings and more are being burnt to the ground.