2025-01-15 05:59:00
At least 25 people have been killed, and some 30 others remain unaccounted for as massive wildfires have ravaged parts of Los Angeles in the past one week. In its latest update, the US National Weather Service warned that hurricane-force winds had the potential of fuelling the wildfires that have destroyed more than 12,000 structures and forced nearly 100,000 people to evacuate from their homes.
Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said the death toll was likely to increase and search and rescue operations continued for the missing people.
Forecasters said the winds were expected to strengthen, with potentially fire-fueling gusts by Wednesday. Red flag warnings remained in effect from Central California to the Mexican border.
“Key message: We are not out of the woods yet,” the National Weather Service said in a social media post late Tuesday. “The winds underperformed today, but one more enhancement could happen tonight-tomorrow.”
The four largest fires around Los Angeles, the second-biggest city in the US, have burned more than 163 square kilometres of land so far, roughly three times the size of Manhattan.
Of these, the Eaton fire near Pasadena was roughly one-third contained, while the largest Palisades fire was far less contained.
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In its update, the National Weather Service said winds peaked overnight with gusts surpassing 80 kph. The winds were weaker than expected during the day on Tuesday but were forecast to peak around 3 am (Los Angeles local time) on Wednesday, with gusts in the mountains possibly reaching 112 kph, it added.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom said 11 new fires broke out in Southern California, but were quickly extinguished. But three other fires were still burning, including one each in Los Angeles’s Ventura and Riverside counties that started on Monday and Tuesday.
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As of Tuesday, the largest Palisades was 17 per cent contained, while the Eaton fire was 35 per cent. The Eaton and Palisades fires are now the most destructive and second-most destructive wildfires, respectively, in Southern California history, according to Cal Fire.
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A few thousand more people were allowed to return to their homes on Tuesday but 88,000 remained under evacuation orders with another 84,000 under evacuation warning — large-scale displacements unprecedented in the Los Angeles area’s history.
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Nearly 90,000 households lost electricity as utilities shut off power to prevent their lines from sparking new blazes.
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The Los Angeles Police Department has arrested 14 people in connection with the Palisades wildfire, CNN quoted Commander Steve Embrich as saying at a Tuesday news conference. Three “noteworthy” arrests of arson suspects took place outside the fire zone on Sunday and Monday, he added.
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Governor Gavin Newsom issued another executive order on Tuesday preventing “aggressive and unsolicited cash offers” to wildfire victims. “As families mourn, the last thing they need is greedy speculators taking advantage of their pain… We will not allow greedy developers to rip off these working-class communities at a time when they need more support than ever before,” he said in a statement.
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Private forecaster AccuWeather estimates total damage and economic loss in the wake of the wildfires between $250 billion and $275 billion, which would make it the costliest natural disaster in US history, surpassing Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
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Democrats in Congress opposed the suggestion by Republicam House Speaker Mike Johnson that conditions be placed on aid. Johnson also said any wildfire disaster assistance funding should be “paid for”, meaning the cost should be covered to prevent adding to the budget deficit, possibly by cutting other programs.
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Hollywood’s awards season has been put on hiatus because of the crisis. The Oscar nominations have been delayed twice, and some organisations postponed their awards shows and announcements without rescheduling.
(With AP and Reuters inputs)
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