‘RHOBH’: Denise Richards Returns Home After California Wildfires Turn Community to ‘Rubble’

While the other Real Housewives of Beverly Hills stars were bickering on their French vacation, Denise Richards was returning home for the first time since the Woolsey fires decimated much of her Malibu neighborhood.

Richards and husband Aaron Phypers returned to their 6,000-square-foot Malibu mansion during Tuesday’s episode of the Bravo show after being forced to evacuate with Richards’ daughters — Sam, 15, Lola Rose, 14, and Eloise, 7.

Seeing the scorched remains of much of their neighborhood, the couple was shocked to see that their house had survived the fire, unlike most of their fellow Malibu residents.

“Look, all this is black,” Richards said as they pulled into the area. “I don’t know how they’ve got these fires out — look at how fast they’ve moved. I cannot believe how much f—ing burned. We are so lucky we got out.”

“It’s eerie isn’t it?” Phypers asked, adding again, “It’s eerie.”

“I don’t think we’re going to be living back here anytime soon,” Richards added. “Ugh, our beautiful community…”

“Reduced to rubble,” Phypers finished.

While their family home survived the fires, the flames made their way “right across the street” from their land. “We’re so lucky,” Richards remarked. “This whole street would have burned down if one house caught fire.”

Learning they still had a home after the devastating wildfires was certainly a relief, but Richards and Phypers were overwhelmed mostly by how lucky they were to get out with their family amid the deadly natural disaster.

“We are so lucky,” Phypers marveled. “We got everyone out to safety, baby.”

“We got out just in time,” Richards agreed. “I mean, this could have been so bad.”

Later, the Wild Things actress recalled the pure terror of trying to save her family from the fire, saying in a confessional, “The fear of trying to get out of Malibu, no one knows unless they were sitting there. The fire was coming so fast, and I’ve never been in that situation where I felt so trapped and couldn’t get out.”

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.

Photo credit: Bravo