Conspiracy theorists claim blue objects that make it through infernos, like this Volkswagen, are evidence of something sinister.

The image quickly became a "beacon of hope" for some in the wake of Los Angeles' deadly January 2025 wildfires.

A photo of the van, taken by an Associated Press photographer, circulated widely on television and online, giving people a measure of joy.

A surprising AP photograph of an undamaged Volkswagen van surrounded by destruction from a Los Angeles wildfire has astonished viewers.

Preston Martin figured the retro blue Volkswagen van he slept in for a year during college was a goner, given that he parked it in a Malibu neighborhood just before the Palisades fire ripped through, reducing homes and cars to rubble and charred metal.

A RETRO blue VW van stands defiant after miraculously surviving the deadly Los Angeles wildfires. Stunned former owner Preston Martin, 24, assumed the 1977 Volkswagen Type 2 van had been consumed

ALBAWABA - Shocking footage has been emerging from Los Angeles as firefighters are bracing to combat the wildfire that has been going on for many days.

Amid the rubble of the wildfires, a blue Voklswagen van from the 1970s somehow remained untouched. The van belonged to surfboard designer Megan Weinraub who was surfing with friends in Malibu just before the fire.

A photo of the vibrant bus taken by an Associated Press photographer circulated widely on television and online, giving viewers a measure of joy.

Preston Martin figured the retro blue Volkswagen van he slept in for a year during college was a goner, given that he parked it in a Malibu neighborhood just before the Palisades fire ripped ...