Los Angeles Wildfires Toll Rises To 24, Many Remain Missing; Winds Likely To Intensify Blazes – News18
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At least 24 people have so far died in the Los Angeles wildfires, while thousands others have been displaced. The authorities have warned of worsening conditions due to powerful winds.
Vehicles driving on a freeway as the sun sets behind smoke from wildfires in Los Angeles, California (Photo: AFP)
The massive wildfires that have been ravaging Los Angeles have claimed 24 lives so far, with warnings of incoming dangerous winds that could whip the blazes up further. The fires continued to rip through the United States’ second-largest city for the sixth day, reducing whole communities to scorched rubble and leaving thousands without homes.
California Governor Gavin Newsom said the wildfires could be the most devastating natural disaster in US history, one that has destroyed thousands of homes and forced 1,00,000 people to evacuate.
Massive firefighting efforts have staunched the Palisades Fire’s spread, looming toward upscale Brentwood and the densely populated San Fernando Valley.
However, conditions are set to dramatically worsen, with “extreme fire behaviour and life-threatening conditions” over the coming days.
Winds up to 70 miles (110 kilometres) per hour mean a “particularly dangerous situation (PDS)” will be declared from early Tuesday, said National Weather Service meteorologist Rose Schoenfeld.
These gusts could fan flames and whip up embers from existing burn zones into new areas, firefighters warned.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles County Fire Department said they had received resources including dozens of new water trucks and firefighters from far afield and were primed to face the renewed threat.
DOZENS OTHERS MISSING, PROPERTIES BURNT
Teams with cadaver dogs were carrying out grid searches with the grim expectation that the confirmed death toll would rise. Additionally, some more arrests of looters were made, including one burglar who had dressed as a firefighter to steal from homes.
Nighttime curfews in evacuated zones have been extended, and additional National Guard resources have been requested.
The Palisades Fire has now consumed 23,700 acres (9,500 hectares) and was just 11 per cent contained.
Aerial firefighters, some of them scooping water out of the Pacific Ocean, dropped water and retardant while land crews with hand tools and hoses held the line of the Palisades Fire as it encroached on the upscale Brentwood section and other populated areas of Los Angeles.
That fire on the western side of town has consumed 23,713 acres (96 sq km) or 37 square miles and stood at 11 per cent contained, a figure representing the percentage of the fire’s perimeter that firefighters have under control.
The Eaton Fire in the foothills east of Los Angeles scorched another 14,117 acres (57 sq km) or 22 square miles – itself nearly the size of Manhattan – and firefighters increased the containment to 27 per cent, up from 15 per cent a day earlier.
North of the city, the Hurst Fire was 89 per cent contained, and three other fires that had ravaged other parts of the county were now 100 per cent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) reported, though areas within the containment lines may still be burning.
The ferocious fire also left streaks of molten metal flowing from burnt-out cars.
The sudden rush of people needing somewhere to live has posed a growing problem for the city, with reports of illegal price gouging from opportunistic landlords, news agency AFP reported.
However, Newsom vowed the city would rebuild, saying there would be a “Marshall Plan” — a reference to the US support that put Europe back on its feet after World War II.
“We already have a team looking at reimagining LA 2.0,” he said.
SEVERE WINDS RETURN
Firefighters got a temporary break from the weather this weekend as Santa Ana winds, which reached hurricane force earlier in the week, finally eased. The dry winds originating from the inland deserts had fanned flames and blew embers up to 2 miles (3 km) ahead of the front lines.
However, in an area that has not received any rain of note since April, the National Weather Service forecast Santa Ana winds of 50 to 70 miles per hour (80 to 112 kph) would continue until Wednesday (January 15).
Officials warned the entire Los Angeles County population of nearly 10 million that anyone may be ordered to evacuate.
By Sunday, more than 1,00,000 people in Los Angeles County had been ordered to evacuate – down from a previous high of more than 150,000 – while another 87,000 faced evacuation warnings.
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