More than six months after the Palisades Fire devastated her community, Culotti is still struggling to come to terms with the aftermath.

Culotti's oceanfront home sustained significant damage, but some of her neighbors and clients lost everything.

"My place burned. My perimeter walls burned. My deck burned. My gym burned," Culotti said.

She also must remove 10 scorched trees from her property before her family can return.

Destruction now overshadows the once-picturesque community that is home to 23,837 people. Like sparse seedlings blooming in a charred forest, only a few signs of rebuilding are visible.

The wildfires in Los Angeles County began on Jan. 7 and continued for more than three weeks, pushing first responders to their limit and a scramble for scarce water supplies. The fires resulted in the deaths of 30 residents, forced more than 200,000 to evacuate their homes, and rendered entire neighborhoods uninhabitable.

Accusations and blame led to the dismissal of Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, along with calls for Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass's resignation, as a federal investigation was launched to determine the cause of one of the state's worst mass casualty fires.

Having lived in Pacific Palisades for more than 25 years, Culotti understands that things will never return to how they once were.

The damage is extensive, with many old landmarks reduced to their foundations or rubble.

High rebuilding costs have forced many residents to relocate, either temporarily or permanently—people whom Culotti knew and helped to build their homes.

On a beautiful, sunny morning around the Fourth of July, Culotti drove past the charred ruins of her community, with many parts left untouched after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers  departed on June 1.

"I think it's going to take 10 years [to rebuild], but it will be unrecognizable. Everything will be worth 10 times what it is today," Culotti said.