After a weekend spent blocking the explosive growth of the fires which destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people in the Los Angeles areafirefighters got a slight reprieve with calmer weather but looked warily at forecasts calling for even more wind.
If this happened, already burned houses and valleys could ignite again, sending embers towards unburned territory miles downwind. New fires could worsen the situation.
See the latest photos from Los Angeles
The death toll rose to 24 over the weekend and is expected to rise further, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Monday. At least two dozen were missing, he said.
Luna said he understands that people are eager to return to their homes and neighborhoods to see the damage, but he asked for their patience. “We have people literally looking for your neighbors’ remains,” he said.
The relative calm on Sunday, however, allowed some people to return to previously evacuated areas.
Jim Orlandini, who lost his hardware store in Altadena, a hard-hit neighborhood near Pasadena, said his home of 40 years survived.
“All the time I was thinking, I don’t know what I’m going to find when I come back here and after 40 years, you know, you have a lot of things that you forget that would be gone if the house burned down. So we’re grateful let this not be the case.
The National Weather Service has issued red flag warnings for severe fires through Wednesday, with sustained winds of 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers per hour) and gusts in the mountains reaching 70 mph (113 km/h). h). The most dangerous day will be Tuesday, fire behavior analyst Dennis Burns warned at a community meeting Sunday evening.
“It’s going to kind of fluctuate over the next couple of days,” Burns said. “Tomorrow night it’s going to really intensify.”
Spottings — new fires started by blown embers — could occur up to 2 miles or more downwind of areas that have already burned, Burns said.
Despite their recent defeats, stress and uncertainty, the crowd in a Pasadena City College gymnasium was mostly respectful, unlike harsh criticism elsewhere of leaders in Los Angeles and California. Applause followed each of the experts, police officers, firefighters and community leaders who spoke.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony C. Marrone said 70 additional water trucks had arrived to help firefighters beat back flames spread by fresh gusts. “We’re ready for the next wind event,” Marrone said.
Fire retardants dropped by planes will act as a barrier along the hills, officials said.
Santa Ana’s strong winds have been widely blamed for turning wildfires sparked last week into infernos that flattened entire neighborhoods around the city where there has been no significant rainfall in more than eight months .
Twelve people were missing in the Eaton fire area and four were missing in the Palisades fire, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said. Investigators were determining whether any of the missing people might be among the dead, but so far no children were among those missing, he said.
Of the 24 deaths reported Monday, eight deaths were attributed to the Palisades Fire and 16 to the Eaton Fire, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.
An American flag hangs behind a commercial building destroyed by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025.
AP Photo/Noé Berger
The toll could rise further as cadaver dogs conduct systematic searches in leveled neighborhoods. The authorities created a center where people could report disappearances.
Authorities were also creating an online database to allow evacuated residents to see whether their homes were damaged or destroyed. Meanwhile, Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley urged people to stay away from burned-out neighborhoods.
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“There are still active fires in the Palisades area, making it extremely dangerous for the public,” Crowley said during a briefing Sunday morning. “There’s no electricity, there’s no water, there are broken gas lines and we have unstable structures.”
Authorities have warned that the ashes may contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.
About 150,000 people in Los Angeles County remain under evacuation orders, and more than 700 residents have taken shelter in nine shelters, Luna said. Officials said it was unlikely most orders in the Palisades area would be lifted before red flag warnings expire Wednesday evening.
“Rest assured that as early as Thursday we will start talking about repopulation,” Marrone said.
In total, four fires consumed more than 100 square miles, an area larger than San Francisco. The Palisades fire was 11 percent contained and the Eaton fire reached 27 percent. These two fires alone represented 59 square miles (nearly 153 square kilometers).
Crews from California and nine other states are part of the ongoing response that includes nearly 1,400 fire trucks, 84 planes and more than 14,000 personnel, including newly arrived firefighters from Mexico.
A car drives past homes and vehicles destroyed by the Palisades Fire in the mobile areas of the Pacific Palisades Bowl, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025, in Los Angeles.
AP Photo/Noah Berger
Fighting to save public and private spaces
After a fierce battle Saturday, firefighters successfully battled flames in Mandeville Canyon, home of Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities near Pacific Palisades, not far from the coast, where helicopters dumped water as the fire charged downward.
The fire moved through the chaparral-covered hills and also briefly threatened to cross Interstate 405 and spread into densely populated areas of the Hollywood Hills and San Fernando Valley.
Looting remains a cause for concern, with authorities reporting more arrests as the damage grew. Among those arrested were two people posing as firefighters entering homes, said Capt. Michael Lorenz of the Los Angeles Police Department.
With California National Guard troops on hand to guard properties, Governor Gavin Newsom posted on X: “California will NOT allow looting. »
The fires that started Tuesday just north of downtown Los Angeles have burned more than 12,000 structures. No cause of the larger fires has been determined.
Preliminary estimates from AccuWeather suggest these fires could be the nation’s costliest on record, topping $250 billion, including what will happen in the coming days.
Beyoncé, Disney and other celebrities and entertainment organizations have pledged millions to help those who have been displaced or lost their homes. Other stars – and everyday people – left large donations of clothing and other items on street corners in various parts of the city.
Firefighters detained on the front line
Along with crews from other states and Mexico, hundreds of inmates from California’s prison system were also helping fight the fires. Nearly 950 prison firefighters were clearing wood and brush ahead of fires to slow their spread, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The practice is controversial because inmates are paid little for dangerous and difficult work: $10.24 per day, and more for 24-hour guards, according to the Department of Corrections.
Reconstruction will be a challenge
Newsom issued an executive order Sunday aimed at speeding up rebuilding by suspending some environmental regulations and ensuring that property tax assessments are not increased.
“We need to let people know we support them,” he said. “We want you to come back, rebuild and rebuild with higher quality building standards and more modern standards. »
More than 24,000 people had signed up for federal aid made available by a major disaster declaration from President Joe Biden, according to the White House.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Sunday that she has spoken with President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration and hopes he will visit the city.
Leaders accused of skimping
Bass faces a critical test of his leadership during the city’s biggest crisis in decades, but allegations of leadership failures, political blame and investigations have begun.
Newsom on Friday ordered state officials to determine why a 117 million gallon (440 million liters) reservoir was out of service and some fire hydrants were dry.
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Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York, Sophia Tareen in Chicago, Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia, and Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyoming, contributed.
