The mecca of cinema burns due to the fires that devastate Los Angeles. In the middle of the six fires is Lidia Pozo, a film composer who has been in residence since 2023. She speaks with ABC while driving on the way to her studio. The alarms have gone off and he doesn’t know if all the work he has done during the year and a half he has been in the city is going to turn into ashes. “Driving here is crazy, the traffic lights don’t work in some sections and it’s dangerous,” he says. He lives in Burbank, a neighborhood within the San Francisco Valley and right in front of the Eaton Fire that burns in Pasadena. “We are surrounded by different fires and although for now they have not reached my area, we are on alert for what may happen.”
The young woman from Cádiz reports that “these are times of great concern and uncertainty” due to the weather conditions. «You never know how this type of situation is going to evolve, even less so with the winds we have had the last three days. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” In the last few hours she has gone from “being more nervous” to being “less stressed” because the fires have not increased in the last few hours, but she does not want to let her guard down.
“We have not been informed of the cause of the fires”
«I really wasn’t aware that it was something so serious until I left my house on Wednesday to go to work and I saw the sky orange and black from the smoke. Then I started searching the internet and finding out what was happening in the city,” he says. “The news doesn’t talk about anything else, but until you see the reflection of the flames for yourself you are not really aware of the danger.” He points out that, for the moment, he has not received any alert or information directly from the government. “We do not know the cause of the fires, we have not been informed about it and I have not been asked to evacuate.”
Lidia Pozo next to a fire truck in the Burbank neighborhood of Los Angeles
This is not the case with several of his friends, who live near the Hollywood Bowl and when the Sunset fire started they were notified that they had to leave their homes. «They have come to my house, since they have not raised the alarm at any time, I assumed last night that we were safe. In any case, we have packed our bags and we are prepared just in case,” says Lidia, who is already considering different options in case, over the course of the hours, she also has to leave her house. «I don’t have family here, the closest thing is my partner’s parents, but they live in Tennessee. “It occurred to us to look for an Airbnb or hotel on the outskirts of the city.”
Active spotlights and extension
fires in California
Data as of January 9
Affected area in km²
During the cold months, anticyclones occur over the Great Lake area. Cold air weighs more (high pressure) and is directed toward where the pressure is lower (low pressure).
The greater the difference
of pressure the air that passes from one level to another generates stronger winds.
The relief (valleys and canyons) and the desert make the speed and temperature of the wind higher.
Death Valley
(Valley of
Death)
Great Basin
(Basin of the
Great Lake)
Several small storms are
producing an air suction effect,
since they increase the pressure difference,
further increasing its speed
Fountain: windy.com / Cal Fire
ABC / J Torres and JdVelasco
Active spotlights and extension
fires in California
Data as of January 9 / Affected area in km²
During the cold months
produce anticyclones over the
Great Lake area. The cold air
weighs more (high pressures) and
directs where the pressure is
lower (low pressures).
The relief that forms valleys and
canyons and desert ago
let the wind reach further
speed and temperature
The greater the difference
of pressure the air that passes
from one level to another generates
stronger winds
Death Valley
(Valley of
Death)
Great Basin
(Great Lake Basin)
Several small storms are producing an air suction effect, as they increase the pressure difference, further increasing its speed
Fountain: windy.com / Cal Fire
ABC / J Torres and JdVelasco
Free Airbnb accommodations for those affected
The truth is that Airbnb, according to Lidia, is offering free stays to all those who have been evacuated or who, on the contrary, have lost their home. This is not the case with his friends, but if the fire finally reaches the Hollywood Hills, they would be consumed by flames, as would the immense sign with white letters that is already a symbol of Los Angeles. “The initiative on your part is great and we will surely opt for that option if necessary.” For the moment, it controls the situation using fire tracking applications and following the news, waiting for new indications.
«The truth is that what we are experiencing is shocking, and we are clearly overwhelmed and worried. But I trust how the areas are being evacuated, it seems that despite the bad things, it is being managed well. Yes, it is true that there are many material losses, but at least the human ones, which are the important ones, are being protected a lot. So far and according to the latest report, there are more than 150,000 evacuees, more than 2,000 buildings destroyed and 5 dead.
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