A series of fierce wildfires that raged across the Los Angeles area on January 7 were fueled by strong winds and dry conditions. They destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed at least 27 people, some of whom perished attempting to stop the fires from devouring their houses.
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.
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 Wednesday evening, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, reported that the fire, which had spread to 23,713 acres, was 65% contained.According to Cal Fire, the fire destroyed or seriously damaged about 7,400 buildings.
Near a canyon in the large national forest areas north of downtown Los Angeles, the Eaton Fire started just hours after the Palisades Fire. By Wednesday evening, Cal Fire reported that it was 89% contained and had erupted to 14,021 acres. More than 10,400 buildings have been recognized by the agency to have been destroyed or seriously damaged in the fire.
Other fires erupted in the Los Angeles region while 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, Kenneth, Hurst, and Auto fires were all completely contained as of Friday evening and were no longer regarded as active. The fires burned 2,399 acres between them.
Have there been deaths and injuries?
Los Angeles County officials said that at least 27 individuals had perished in the flames as of Thursday afternoon.
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 the medical examiner’s office, the Palisades Fire claimed 10 lives while the Eaton Fire claimed at least 17.
The identities of those slain may not be confirmed for weeks, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Authorities have cautioned that the number of fatalities may increase.
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 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.
Officials said on Thursday that some neighborhoods evacuated due to the Palisades and Eaton fires would only be partially repopulated.
Unknown numbers of individuals are now homeless as a result of the fires destroying entire blocks and neighborhoods.
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.
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist, said that California has recently been experiencing weather whiplash, lurching between periods of drought and heavy rains. He claimed that these fluctuations are a major factor in the fire weather that is affecting the state.
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.
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