Los Angeles wildfires consume thousands of homes as the death toll rises to 11

Firefighters were hoping for relief Friday from the high winds that fanned massive fires in the Los Angeles area, killing 11 people, destroying entire neighborhoods and putting the nation’s second-largest city on the brink.

The fires have destroyed more than 12,000 homes and other buildings since Tuesday, in a densely populated area extending 40 kilometers north of downtown Los Angeles.

No cause has been determined for the largest fires.

Containment of the fires remained elusive in most cases. Evacuation orders were issued for at least 180,000 people in the fires that consumed about 145 square kilometers.

National Guard troops arrived in Los Angeles, to be deployed near fire-ravaged areas to protect property.

Los Angeles Mayor Robert Luna said the curfew in all mandatory evacuation zones would begin again at 6 p.m. local time on Friday for homes that remained standing.

At least 20 people were arrested for looting.

“Looting is a despicable crime,” Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. “For the people who have already been arrested, please know that this will not end well.”

The city of Santa Monica, which neighbors Pacific Palisades, also issued a curfew due to the chaos.

Hochman also promised full prosecution of citizens who use drones, which is illegal during fire emergencies. A Quebec firefighter plane was forced to grounded Thursday after it collided with a drone, an incident that did not result in any injuries.

With the tension high, Los Angeles County sent out two alerts, on Thursday and Friday, with incorrect information regarding evacuation orders. Corrections were sent, and the state apologized on Friday, saying it was investigating the matter.

Kevin McGowan, director of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management, said the incorrect messages were not “human-driven” and that teams were investigating a software issue.

“I appeal to everyone not to disable messages on your phone,” he said.

Canadian military resources will be sent to assist firefighters in California, the federal government announced in Ottawa on Friday.

Kabir reportedly died with a garden hose in his hand

At least 11 people were killed, five in the Palisades fire and six in the Eaton fire, according to the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office. Cadaver dogs and crews are searching through the rubble to see if there are more victims.

Among the dead were Anthony Mitchell, 67, an amputee, and his son Justin, who had cerebral palsy. Mitchell’s daughter, Hajime White, told The Washington Post that they were waiting for an ambulance to arrive and had not gotten to safety when the fire started.

Victor Shaw has been identified as one of the other victims of the Eaton fire.

Shari Shaw told KTLA she tried to convince her 66-year-old brother to leave Tuesday night but he wanted to stay and fight the fire. family friend, To the same mediaVictor Shaw was found with the garden hose still in his hand, he said.

The Eaton Fire near Pasadena that started Tuesday night has burned more than 5,000 structures, a term that includes homes, apartment buildings, businesses, outbuildings and vehicles.

Robert Lara searched through the remains of his home in Altadena, next to Pasadena, on Thursday with tears in his eyes, hoping to find a safe containing a collection of earrings that once belonged to his great-grandmother.

“All our memories, all our emotional attachments, the things that we have given away from generation to generation, are now gone,” he said.

Crews extinguished a fire that broke out in the Hollywood Hills area with the help of water drops from airplanes, allowing the evacuation order to be lifted Thursday.

At least five churches, a synagogue, seven schools, two libraries, shops, bars, restaurants, banks, and grocery stores were burned.

All schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second-largest, will be closed again Friday due to heavy smoke and ash affecting the city’s air.

An incorrect alert was sent throughout the county

Many celebrities have lost their homes in the fires, including Jeff Bridges, Mandy Moore and Paris Hilton.

Jamie Lee Curtis pledged $1 million to start a “support fund” for those affected by the fires that touched all economic levels from the city’s wealthy to the working class.

The fires also led to the cancellation and modification of sports schedules. Instead of hosting, the Los Angeles Rams will now play their NFL playoff game on Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings at the home stadium of the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Arizona.

The government has not yet announced figures on the cost of the damage. AccuWeather, a private company that provides data on weather and its impact, on Thursday raised its estimate of damage and economic losses to between US$135 and US$150 billion.

California’s wildfire season is starting earlier and ending later due to higher temperatures and lower precipitation linked to climate change, according to recent data. Several weather monitoring agencies announced on Friday that the Earth will record the hottest year on record in 2024.

The rains that usually end the fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn during the winter months, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association.

Dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anse, contributed to above-average temperatures in Southern California, which has not seen more than 2.5 millimeters of rain since early May.

US President Joe Biden promised on Thursday that the federal government would make up 100 percent of the recovery over the next 180 days to pay for debris and hazardous materials removal, temporary shelters and salaries for first responders.