PR Helps Ideal Living Become a Public Health Lifeline During Southern California’s Wildfire Emergency

In January 2025, Southern California faced a public health emergency as wildfires ravaged the Pacific Palisades and Eaton, resulting in toxic smoke, ash and airborne pollutants and runoff threatening drinking water.

Amid this chaos, the client turned to public relations with an urgent ask: Get the word out fast about how to protect air and water quality as the fires raged.

With lives potentially at stake, there was no time to launch a traditional campaign. Public relations had to act fast and cut through a relentless stream of wildfire headlines, misinformation and fear to educate the public on critical indoor air and water safety — saving lives and safeguarding health was at stake.

Bospar’s team of public relations professionals built a strategy around speed, precision and public service, needing to respond in real-time to a crisis that extended far beyond fire lines. When Southern California’s Air Quality Index (AQI) data revealed dangerous PM2.5 spikes, the team swiftly launched a campaign in under 48 hours, grounded in both science and empathy.

The public relations team began by analyzing AQI data and public health advisories, uncovering a critical — and underreported — narrative: While media attention fixated on the flames, millions were breathing toxic air indoors and facing potential contamination in their drinking water. PR’s media scan confirmed a gap: Few news outlets were covering these second-order effects, and almost none were providing actionable guidance to affected families.

To meet this need, PR focused media outreach where it mattered most: local media. Securing these placements and interviews in key news outlets would be essential lifelines and offer residents trusted information in a time of uncertainty.

PR also strategized positioning the company’s CEO not as a brand spokesperson, but as a public health advocate. The team leveraged his expertise in their media outreach to demystify issues surrounding indoor filtration, HVAC safety and boil-water myths, and establish him as a credible, calming authority amid chaos.

The team’s efforts even extended beyond media. The client’s donations of its AirDoctor and AquaTru units to schools and fire-affected families, coupled with personal visits from company leadership, proved to be a key component of PR’s pitches. By offering wholesale discounts and free units, the team could reinforce the client’s mission during this crisis to news outlets: saving lives, not selling products, while underscoring their role as a first responder for indoor health.

With earned media as the only channel, Bospar’s team of public relations professionals led with facts, compassion and urgency — working tirelessly to transform the client’s voice into a vital public health resource during an environmental crisis.