LA firefighters brace for return of extreme winds
Published: 04:01 PM,Jan 14,2025 | EDITED : 08:01 PM,Jan 14,2025
A firefighter works to extinguish the last embers in the hills of Mandeville Canyon, in Los Angeles. — AFP
LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles firefighters on Tuesday braced for the return of dry, intense winds that could recharge two monstrous wildfires that have already killed at least 24 people, levelled entire neighbourhoods and scorched an area the size of Washington, DC Much of Los Angeles and Ventura County could experience gusts of 50 to 70 mph from early on Tuesday through Wednesday as dangerous Santa Ana winds picked up after relative calm since late last week, according to the National Weather Service.
The red flag warning, which the weather service designated as a rare 'particularly dangerous situation,' raised fears that new fires could ignite and existing blazes could re-energise. 'This setup is about as bad as it gets,' Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told local residents. 'We are not in the clear.' In anticipation of the winds, more than 8,500 firefighters attacked the two biggest existing wildfires from the air and on the ground, aiming to prevent them from spreading overnight.
State authorities on Monday pre-positioned firefighting crews in Los Angeles and other Southern California counties that were under elevated fire danger. The Palisades and Eaton fires erupted on the city's western and eastern flanks during last week's intense winds but crews made progress in controlling them since the weekend. At least 24 people have died, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, but the death toll will likely rise, officials said, as crews carry out house-to-house searches in burnt-out neighbourhoods.
The wildfires have destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 structures, turning entire neighbourhoods into smouldering ash and piles of rubble and leaving an apocalyptic landscape. As of Monday, more than 92,000 people in Los Angeles County were under evacuation orders — down from more than 150,000 - while a further 89,000 faced evacuation warnings. The Palisades Fire, which wiped out upscale communities on the western flank of Los Angeles, has burned 23,713 acres (96 square km) and was 14 per cent contained. The Eaton Fire in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains east of the city consumed another 14,117 acres (57 sq km) and was 33 per cent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) reported. A third fire, the Hurst, spanning 799 acres (3.2 sq km) was 95 per cent contained, while three other fires in the county have been fully brought under control in recent days. — Reuters
The red flag warning, which the weather service designated as a rare 'particularly dangerous situation,' raised fears that new fires could ignite and existing blazes could re-energise. 'This setup is about as bad as it gets,' Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told local residents. 'We are not in the clear.' In anticipation of the winds, more than 8,500 firefighters attacked the two biggest existing wildfires from the air and on the ground, aiming to prevent them from spreading overnight.
State authorities on Monday pre-positioned firefighting crews in Los Angeles and other Southern California counties that were under elevated fire danger. The Palisades and Eaton fires erupted on the city's western and eastern flanks during last week's intense winds but crews made progress in controlling them since the weekend. At least 24 people have died, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, but the death toll will likely rise, officials said, as crews carry out house-to-house searches in burnt-out neighbourhoods.
The wildfires have destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 structures, turning entire neighbourhoods into smouldering ash and piles of rubble and leaving an apocalyptic landscape. As of Monday, more than 92,000 people in Los Angeles County were under evacuation orders — down from more than 150,000 - while a further 89,000 faced evacuation warnings. The Palisades Fire, which wiped out upscale communities on the western flank of Los Angeles, has burned 23,713 acres (96 square km) and was 14 per cent contained. The Eaton Fire in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains east of the city consumed another 14,117 acres (57 sq km) and was 33 per cent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) reported. A third fire, the Hurst, spanning 799 acres (3.2 sq km) was 95 per cent contained, while three other fires in the county have been fully brought under control in recent days. — Reuters