The death toll in the multiple fires ravaging Los Angeles has increased to 10 people. However, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL Fire) maintains the death toll at 5, and the chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department reported this Thursday two new deaths in Palisades. The latest update has been offered by the Los Angeles medical examiner’s department, which points to 10 fatalities, according to Reuters.
Late Thursday, Los Angeles Sheriff Robert Luna was still talking about five victims as well, although he did not rule out that the number could increase. “Based on the level of devastation, it is clear that I do not expect good news,” he told the media. Luna prefers not to talk about an official balance until it is safe for investigators to go to the affected areas and determine the deaths.
He Palisades It is already the largest of all the fires, with almost 8,000 hectares burned and more than 5,000 buildings destroyed west of Los Angeles. The fire has devastated the community of Pacific Palisades, where about 23,000 people reside. This is where the two new bodies have been reported. He Eatonnorthwest of the city, near Altadena and Pasadena, has also destroyed about 5,000 buildings and already covers about 5,500 hectares, according to firefighters.
He Palisades and the Eaton They are the two largest fires that remain out of control. Just to combat the Eaton More than 1,500 firefighters have been assigned. Both the Palisades like him Eaton They are becoming two of the five most destructive fires California has ever experienced.
The last fire that has been activated is the Kenneth, which started in West Hills and has spread about 300 hectares. The Los Angeles Fire Chief, Kirstion M. Crowley, assured at this Thursday’s press conference that the emergence of Kenneth shows “how we have not yet overcome this extreme weather situation.” Instead, the fire Sunsetwhich threatened the Hollywood Hills area, has been contained and has not caused structural damage. The fire Hurstwhich affects Sylmar, is 10% contained.
With the new active fires and the advance of the two large fires, some 180,000 people have already been evacuated and another 200,000 are under evacuation notices. In total, the CAL Fire estimates that more than 11,000 hectares burned.
Wind continues to be one of the main enemies of firefighters in fire containment tasks. Although for a few hours the Santa Ana winds have given a respite to the troops, who have been able to make progress, the gusts have quickly regained strength. Gusts of up to 96 kilometers per hour are expected to reach again.
The other big problem when it comes to containing fires is the failure of the system to transport water to the fire hydrants and the lack of personnel. The Los Angeles Fire Department had recently suffered a budget cut and has already acknowledged that they do not have enough firefighters to address the current crisis. Los Angeles County has requested support from the California National Guard.
President Joe Biden announced late this afternoon, East Coast time, that the federal government “will cover 100% of the cost of measures to protect lives and property in Southern California for six months.” Biden assures that he has spoken with the governor of California, Democrat Gavin Newson, and has asked him not to skimp on expenses to protect the population.
On Wednesday, the president already signed a federal disaster declaration for Los Angeles County, which makes federal funds available to those affected by the fires to seek temporary shelter, repairs to their damaged homes and other programs.
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