Tripepi Smith Supports the City of Malibu During the Franklin and Palisades Fires
In December 2024, the City of Malibu tapped Tripepi Smith to assist with strategic messaging for the 2024 Franklin Fire. On the heels of this emergency, the 2025 Palisades Fire struck Malibu, requiring even more resources. The City once again turned to Tripepi Smith for expanded crisis communications support to manage the heightened demands of the emergency.
Throughout the active emergency, Tripepi Smith worked closely with the City, providing around-the-clock coverage and real-time updates through the City’s social media channels and website. Prioritizing public safety, the team was focused on distributing timely, factual information regarding situational updates, evacuation warnings and orders, traffic impacts, utility service impacts and more. In addition, the Tripepi Smith team provided crucial media monitoring services, ensuring the City maintained a pulse on community conversations, emerging concerns and potential misinformation.
A key component of Tripepi Smith’s efforts was the creation and ongoing maintenance of a dedicated webpage, which served as a central hub for updates. The webpage included information about fire containment, damaged and destroyed structures, evacuation information, updates from partner agencies such as CalFire, Los Angeles County, Caltrans, SoCalGas, Southern California Edison and more.
“When disaster strikes, clear and effective communication can literally save lives,” said Deputy City Manager Alexis Brown. “Tripepi Smith provided the expertise and support we needed to deliver real-time updates. Their partnership has been fundamental in both the immediate response and the long-term recovery process – from the jump, they had the bandwidth to match our 24-hour shifts, and they continue to help fine tune our communication strategy to meet the needs of this evolving situation.”
As the fire response transitioned to recovery, the team adjusted its strategy to lead the community’s recovery effort with unwavering support and widespread resources. To ensure this effort was distinct and recognizable to the community, Tripepi Smith assisted in creating the Malibu Rebuilds logo and brand. The City then launched MalibuRebuilds.org, a dedicated website to guide Malibu residents and businesses through the rebuilding process. Beyond digital communications, Tripepi Smith has developed various materials such as flyers, newspaper ads, videos, press releases and more to expand the City’s reach and encourage community participation in important rebuilding conversations.
“This experience has exemplified the power of teamwork and robust communication,” said Sydni Overly, Director at Tripepi Smith. “We’ve been so honored to support the City of Malibu at every stage of the response and recovery, and we remain dedicated to helping advance their mission of empowering a stronger, more resilient future.”
The partnership between the City of Malibu and Tripepi Smith highlights the importance of strategic crisis communications during a disaster. As Malibu continues to rebuild, the lessons learned from this collaboration will serve as a model for effective crisis response, highlighting the importance of preparedness, transparency and community engagement.
About the City of Malibu
Incorporated in March 28, 1991, the City of Malibu sits on 21 miles of California’s coastline. Malibu is home to many beautiful parks and open space areas that are available for public enjoyment including beaches and harbors along the coast.
About Tripepi Smith
Tripepi Smith is a California-based marketing, technology and public affairs firm that serves for-profit, nonprofit and public agencies. Its unique mix of marketing and technology prowess provides a competitive advantage to agencies seeking to leverage the internet to achieve their communication goals. The firm provides full content creation services, including: ghost writing, collateral development, photography, video production, aerial imagery, search engine optimization, email marketing campaigns and website design and execution. Tripepi Smith’s diverse clients include: City of American Canyon, City of Calabasas, City of Culver City, City of Cupertino, City of Daly City, City of Duarte, City of Grover Beach, City of Indian Wells, City of La Cañada Flintridge, City of Lake Forest, City of Livermore, City of Malibu, City of Napa, City of Palmdale, City of Paramount, City of Tracy, CalChoice Energy Authority, California Joint Powers Insurance Authority, Santa Clara County Fire Department, Costa Mesa Sanitary District, Rowland Water District, California City Management Foundation, Renne Public Law Group, West Coast Arborists, Scripps College, Blind Children’s Center and Climatec.