A series of fierce wildfires that raged over the Los Angeles area last week were fueled by strong winds and dry conditions. They destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed at least 24 people, some of whom perished attempting to stop the fires from engulfing their homes.
Two of the fires were linked to an undetermined number of serious injuries, according to a Los Angeles County fire official, while a city official in Los Angeles called the night of January 7 one of the most terrible and catastrophic she had ever witnessed in her area of the city.
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According to climate scientist Daniel Swain, the more information we get, the worse this appears to be.
What we know about the flames is as follows.
Where are the fires?
On the morning of January 7, a brush fire broke out in Pacific Palisades, a suburb in Los Angeles east of Malibu. By Sunday evening, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, reported that the fire had spread to over 23,713 acres. Cal Fire reported that the fire was 17% contained and that 5,316 structures were probably damaged or destroyed.
Near a canyon in the large national forest areas north of downtown Los Angeles, the Eaton Fire started just hours after the Palisades Fire. Cal Fire reports that on Tuesday, it had erupted to 14,117 acres and was 35% contained. According to the organization, the fire most certainly destroyed or seriously damaged about 7,800 buildings.
The Hurst Fire began as a brush fire on January 7 in Sylmar, a suburban area north of San Fernando. Cal Fire reports that as of Tuesday evening, it had spread to 799 acres and was 97% contained.According to Cal Fire, the fire most certainly destroyed or seriously damaged two buildings.
Almost a week after the initial wave of fires in Los Angeles broke out, the Auto Fire broke out in Ventura County on Monday night. By Tuesday morning, it was completely uncontained and barely covered 56 acres.
Last week, more flames started in the Los Angeles area as firefighters battled the biggest blazes. Crews were successful in containing the fires and halting their further progress. According to Cal Fire, the Lidia, Archer, Woodley, Sunset, and Kenneth fires were all completely controlled as of Sunday night and were no longer regarded as active. The fires burned 1,539 acres between them.
How many people are affected?
As crews attempted to contain the fires, nearly 200,000 people were at one time under evacuation orders. The figure had dropped to about 88,000 by Tuesday morning, with an additional 84,800 people in evacuation warning zones spread across Los Angeles County.
Unknown numbers of individuals are now homeless as a result of the fires destroying entire blocks and neighborhoods.
Have there been deaths and injuries?
According to Los Angeles County officials, at least 24 individuals have perished in the fires as of Sunday night.
Many of the deaths are still under investigation by the county medical examiner’s office. The government stated that unless the remains are processed at its facilities, it is unable to verify if they are human remains.
According to officials, the Palisades Fire claimed eight lives and the Eaton Fire claimed at least 16.
The identities of those slain may not be confirmed for weeks, according to the medical examiner’s office.
On Thursday, officials cautioned that the death toll could rise as they only started to enter regions for welfare checks and missing person reports.
According to Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone, the Palisades Fire has harmed a sizable number of persons who disregarded evacuation orders. He added that the Eaton Fire has resulted in serious injuries.
How much damage have the fires done?
According to estimates released by JPMorgan on Thursday, the insured losses from last week’s fires may surpass $20 billion, and the total economic losses could amount to $50 billion.
According to Aon data, the losses would significantly outweigh the $12.5 billion in insured damages from the 2018 Camp Fire, which was the most expensive fire in the nation’s history up to that point.
What led to the fires?
The fires’ official cause has not yet been identified.
Southern California has experienced less than 10% of its usual rainfall since October 1st due to drought-like conditions, and this week’s strong offshore winds caused fire weather that the National Weather Service described as “about as bad as it gets.”
A red flag warning was issued by the government to 19 million individuals, signifying a higher risk of fire danger. At many sites throughout the region, wind gusts above 70 mph were observed.
According to Swain, one of the main causes of the fire weather that is engulfing the state is the recent weather whiplash that California has seen, which has seen the state veer between periods of drought and intense rainfall.
According to Inside Climate News, he stated, “It’s not just that drier conditions are perpetually more likely in a warming climate.” The risk of wildfires in Southern California is especially affected by this back-and-forth between states.
When will the fire weather end?
According to the National Weather Service, Santa Ana winds are expected to persist through Wednesday in areas of Ventura and Los Angeles counties, with the possibly destructive gusts occurring between early Tuesday and Wednesday morning.
According to the weather service, severe fire conditions are still present even if the winds are not predicted to be as powerful and destructive as those that caused the two worst fires to start and spread last week.
Officials advised residents to think about leaving as soon as an evacuation warning is issued rather than waiting for a required order, as winds are predicted to be at their worst on Wednesday afternoon.
Much of Ventura and Los Angeles counties are under a red flag warning through Wednesday.