Wildfires are raging on in Los Angeles, with at least 24 people killed and more than 100,000 people under evacuation orders. Looters are a persistent thorn in the side of the authorities, with criminals even dressing as firefighters in order to steal from evacuated homes.
Monday 13 January 2025 02:58, UK
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High winds are expected to fan the flames of the Los Angeles wildfires.
Santa Ana winds of up to 50-70mph are set to resume on Sunday night local time and last until Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service forecast.
Officials have warned the entire Los Angeles County population of nearly 10 million that anyone could be ordered to evacuate from the flames and toxic smoke.
More than 100,000 people in Los Angeles County have been ordered to evacuate so far, down from a previous high of more than 150,000 – with another 87,000 facing evacuation warnings.
“These winds combined with low relative humidities and low fuel moistures will keep the fire threat in all of Los Angeles County very high,” Los Angeles County fire chief Anthony Marrone told a press conference earlier.
He said evacuated areas may not be reopened until red flag conditions are lifted on Thursday.
All schools except some in mandatory evacuation zones will reopen on Monday, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho announced.
Photos show members of the Animal Advocacy Network entering evacuated people’s houses to rescue their cats in areas affected by the Palisades Fire.
The number of people killed by wildfires in the Los Angeles area has increased to 24.
Sixteen people have been killed in the Eaton fire and eight in the Palisades fire, according to the Los Angeles County medical examiner.
It said the deaths “are still under investigation”.
Ten of those listed as deceased are unidentified, the office said in a statement.
By David Blevins, Sky News correspondent
The minister of Altadena Community Church announced his retirement last Sunday.
Two days later, the sanctuary burned to the ground as wildfires ravaged Los Angeles.
Reverend Paul Tellstrom said: “We just have to get up tomorrow morning and start over again.”
One in three of his congregation have lost their homes and are “exhausted” by the trauma.
“How do you tell them it’s going to be okay? But it’s going to be okay,” he added.
Another church, 27 miles away, opened its doors to those who’d lost their place of worship.
It was “my home church, my everything church,” one lady told me as she arrived.
“It’s a chance to get together. It’s a long drive out, but it’s worth it, because we need hugs.”
Churches, mosques and synagogues are not just houses of prayer, but serve as community centres too.
Sacred places, where they marked the milestones of life and where they turn for help, are gone.
Teams using cadaver dogs are conducting systematic grid searches in areas torched by the wildfires as officials expect the number of deaths to rise.
Some 16 people have been killed in the Los Angeles area and at least 16 remain missing.
California’s governor Gavin Newsom said he expected the number of people killed to increase.
“I’ve got search and rescue teams out. We’ve got cadaver dogs out and there’s likely to be a lot more,” he told NBC’s Meet the Press programme.
Twelve people are missing within the Eaton Fire zone and four from the Palisades Fire, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna has said.
He said “dozens” more reports might have come in on Sunday morning and investigators were reconciling whether some of the missing might be among the dead.
There were no children among those reported missing, he added.
Officials will begin to discuss returning people who have been evacuated to their homes on Thursday, Los Angeles County fire chief Anthony Marrone has said.
Around 150,000 people in Los Angeles County remain under evacuation orders, with more than 700 residents taking refugee in nine shelters, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna.
Mr Marrone said: “Please rest assured that first thing Thursday we will begin talking about repopulation.”
He said 70 additional water trunks have arrived to help crews to battle flames spread by fresh gusts.
“We are prepared for the upcoming wind event,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose emergency services are frequently stretched by Russian attacks, has offered help to combat the California wildfires.
Zelenskyy asked his team to “prepare for the possible participation of our rescuers in combating the wildfires in California,” according to a transcript posted to the president’s website.
“The situation there is extremely challenging, and Ukrainians can help Americans protect lives,” he said.
“This matter is being worked out, and through appropriate channels, we have offered our assistance to the American side. We already have 150 firefighters prepared.”
Amid the devastation, a glimmer of joy for one Palisades resident.
Casey Colvin’s dog Oreo had been missing for days since the fires began – until this morning, when our NBC News colleagues spotted the pooch at a neighbouring property.
With his other rescue dog, Tika Tika Tika, in tow, Mr Colvin fist-pumped the air and shouted with joy as he retrieved Oreo from the rubble.
“Oh my god you’re alive, you’re alive,” he screamed.
A further 1,000 members of the California National Guard are being deployed to aid response efforts, governor Gavin Newsom has announced.
This means a total of 2,500 service members will have deployed by tomorrow, his office said.
“The men and women of the California National Guard have been on the ground since day one – not only fighting fires, but also assisting with public safety efforts in communities devastated by these fires,” said Newsom.
More than 15,000 firefighters, National Guard members, highway officers and transportation teams are supporting the firefight.
More than 1,350 fire engines and 80 aircraft are involved.
Police have arrested two people for curfew violations in the Palisades fire evacuation zone near Kamala Harris’s Brentwood home.
They were not on the vice president’s property, two law enforcement sources told NBC News.
The pair did not appear to know where they were.
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