Two fires are advancing uncontrollably, encouraged by strong winds that keep a part of Los Angeles (United States) in a state of emergency, with 30,000 people evacuated and the threat that the flames will continue to spread rapidly through residential areas.
The fire in Pacific Palisades, one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the city of stars, began this Tuesday morning and in a few hours has gone from affecting 200 acres to almost 3,000 acres (about 1,200 hectares) in the afternoon. The mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, declared a state of emergency in the afternoon.
Despite the mobilization of firefighters to fight the flames, the disaster could not be contained, according to information from the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) and the rapid advance of the flames threatens some 10,000 homes and some 13,000 structures.
Winds gusting up to 60 miles per hour (more than 90 kilometers per hour) are expected to persist through Thursday, which could intensify the spread of the fire, due to the city’s parched landscape that has suffered a significant lack of rain. in the season.
An American flag flies as fire engulfs a structure in Palisades, Los Angeles, on January 7, 2025.
Fast forward
No injuries or fatalities have yet been reported in the Palisades fire, but the federal government and US President Joe Biden are closely monitoring the fire due to the possibility that it will continue to grow on the margins of a county where they live. almost 10 million people at high speed.
Several dozen firefighting units have been deployed to Pacific Palisades, aerial resources and even bulldozers have been deployed to clear a large number of vehicles left behind by residents in this hasty evacuation.
Among the residents of this neighborhood, one of the richest in Los Angeles, are Hollywood stars such as Jennifer Aniston, Bradley Cooper, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Reese Witherspoon, Adam Sandler and Michael Keaton, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The Biden Administration this Tuesday offered federal resources and approved emergency aid to support the affected areas in Los Angeles County.
“My team and I are in contact with state and local officials and have offered any federal assistance needed to contain the terrible fires in Pacific Palisades,” Biden said in a statement.
In addition, the federal emergency agency FEMA approved a first aid package for fire assistance that will help the state of California face the most immediate costs in fighting the fire, according to the White House.
A new fire in Eaton Canyon
Another fire broke out during the afternoon of Tuesday in the east of the county in Eaton Canyon, north of Los Angeles, quickly expanding to 400 acres, according to Cal Fire, and forcing more evacuations of this large metropolitan area due to the great potential for growth.
Crews from the Pasadena Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department and the U.S. Forest Service are responding to the fire.
The devastation and rapid spread has caused four Malibu school campuses to remain closed on Wednesday, as well as the Pasadena Unified School District, a city adjacent to Altadena.
“The city of Pasadena is evaluating without declaring a state of emergency due to weather impacts,” the district said in a statement obtained by NBC.
The National Weather Service (NWS) warned on Monday that Southern California would be affected in the coming days by a wind storm that would mainly affect Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
“High winds and low relative humidity will produce critical and extremely critical weather conditions in Southern California through Thursday,” reads an advisory on the NWS website.
The fires have broken out due to a mix of dry conditions and strong winds, which are likely to intensify overnight.
Source: www.huffingtonpost.es
