Firefighters are battling several blazes in the Los Angeles wildfires areas as US officials urged resident to prepare for the return of dangerous winds that could “potentially cause explosive fire growth”. Los Angeles is prone to wildfires, particularly in the hot, dry summer and fall months, due to its Mediterranean climate and surrounding chaparral vegetation.
Wildfires can be fueled by high winds dry conditions, and sometimes human activity. Over the years, significant wildfires have caused extensive damage, including property loss, evacuations, and air quality issues. In Los Angeles several times they suffered from wildfires and lost their lives and evacuate to other places.
What to know about the devastation from the Los Angeles-area fires?
Fires burning homes and businesses in Los Angeles for a week have killed at least 24 people, displace thousands of others. And destroyed more than 12,000 buildings in what might be the most expensive set of conflagrations in the nation’s history.
The blazes started Jan.7, fueled by fierce Santa Ana winds that have posed problems for the large forces of firefighters deployed across several areas of the sprawling city. Cal Fire reported that the Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst fires have consumed about 63 square miles. Cal Fire reported containment of the Palisades Fire at 17% and the Eaton Fire at 35% on Tuesday.
The Palisades Fire, along the coast, has been blamed for eight deaths. While the Eaton Fire farther inland has been blamed for 16 others, the LA County medical examiner’s office said. At least 23 people are missing.
Investigators are still trying to determine what sparked the fires. They could be the nation’s costliest ever. Government agencies haven’t provided preliminary damages estimates yet, but AccuWeather, a company that provides data on weather. And its impact puts the damage and economic losses at $250 billion to $275 billion.
