Jennie Garth Says Evacuating to Ex Peter Facinelli’s House Amid California Wildfires Was ‘Comforting’

After years of not being particularly close, Jennie Garth was able to turn to ex-husband Peter Facinelli when she and husband Dave Abrams were forced to evacuate to the Twilight alum’s house during the deadly Los Angeles wildfires in January.

“It was just the natural choice,” Jennie, 52, told E! News in an interview published on Monday, February 10. “The girls were like, ‘Let’s go to dad’s.’ And I said, ‘Absolutely, get the dogs. Dave, you meet us there.’ And then we all just sat around together, watched the news and talked and ate Chinese food. It felt very comforting and fuzzy and warm in a very scary time.”

Jennie and Peter, 51, were married for nearly 11 years before announcing their split in 2012. The former couple share three young adult daughters: Luca, 27, Lola, 22, and Fiona 18.

The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum said her time with Peter during the Eaton Fire evacuation likely brought back happy memories for her girls.

“I’m sure they had some pinch me moments where they were like, ‘What? My mom and my dad are standing in his kitchen eating banana bread together,'” she joked. “I’m sure it was surreal for them at times, but I know they loved it and it made them feel good.”

Jennie credited Peter’s appearance on her “I Choose Me” podcast in November 2024 for getting the former couple to the point where she was able to turn to him in such a time of need.

“It really cleared the air for us in a lot of ways, to reconnect as just people, instead of like a divorced couple, the mom and the dad and not agreeing on stuff,” she confided to the outlet.

“I like Peter. He likes me. I mean, obviously we were together for 17 years. And I love his fiancée and his new son. It’s just nice to be open and be easy,” she said of their new understanding of one another.

Peter has been with fiancée Lily Anne Harrison since 2016. The couple got engaged in 2020 and welcomed son Jack in September 2022.

Jennie and Dave, 43, discussed their evacuation and how they ended up at Peter’s home during the January 11 episode of her “I Choose Me” podcast.

“It’s been a weird week … a weird start to 2025 to say the least,” Dave explained. His wife added, “I thought this was going to be a good year — we were going in strong and so excited for what was going to come and this just came out of nowhere,” referring to their evacuation during the Eaton Fire that destroyed more than 9,400 structures in the foothill community of Altadena, California.

“We could see the flames from our house. It was one range, one hill over. It was really scary. I think that’s when panic set in,” Jennie told listeners. When recalling the strong winds, she described, “It felt like our house was going to fly away, crumble, break every wall … the kids were terrified.”

Dave revealed, “You could start to smell the smoke, so we made a decision — we called Peter — and we all made a decision to go over there.”

While Jennie and Luca, Lola and Fiona headed to the home of the Nurse Jackie alum on January 7, Dave initially stayed back at their house with an elderly pet before being forced to evacuate the morning of January 8.

“It’s surreal thinking that you’re not going to see your place ever again,” the J. Edgar star recalled.

“We all had a family dinner together, which was really nice,” Dave remembered fondly of their first meal at Peter and Lily Anne’s house. “We had never done that before. We ordered Chinese food. It was enjoyable and for that brief moment we were not thinking.”

Jennie and Dave’s home ultimately survived the devastating blaze.