LA wildfires: death toll rises to 24 as winds threaten further destruction
The death toll from the Eaton and Palisades fires that have consumed large swathes of Los Angeles county – and are still less than 30% contained – has risen to 24, according to medical examiners.
The county of Los Angeles medical examiner published a list of fatalities without giving details of any identities. Eight of the dead were found in the Palisades fire zone, and 16 in the Eaton fire zone, the document said.
Officials in California warned on Sunday that strengthening winds in the coming days threatened to expand the destruction through the city that has already seen many neighborhoods erased. More than 1,800 total structures had been destroyed by the two fires with upwards of 10,000 damaged.
Three wildfires were still burning Sunday in Los Angeles county, where more than 150,000 people remained under an evacuation warning. Firefighters said shifting Santa Ana winds could blow the Palisades fire, which has razed almost 24,000 acres, back on itself towards the coast.
At a news conference on Sunday afternoon, officials said more than 4,700 personnel were assigned to stopping the blazes from spreading as winds are forecast to pick up again from tonight through Wednesday.
Christian Litz, a battalion chief with the LA county fire department, said the Palisades fire was “looking really good as far as flame activity but there’s still heat all along the edges” and crew were still working to ensure there was “no fire progression or to limit it as much as possible.”
Litz said that in addition to fire crews clearing a fire perimeter, or contingency line, the department had deployed “an abundance” of airborne fire-fighting resources.
“We have airplanes, we have helicopters, even drones. We’re dropping retardant, we’re dropping water everywhere we can to secure that edge,” he added.
Despite fears that high winds would make airborne firefighting impossible on Sunday, aircraft did continue to drop fire retardant and water throughout the day.
Rich Thompson with the National Weather Service said the winds that had driven what he called “very extreme fire behavior” last week were set to return but with lower intensity.
“Unfortunately, we’re still under a Santa Ana wind pattern and have expectation of moderate to strong winds through Wednesday … with gusts anywhere from 35 to 55 miles per hour.” The wind and dry conditions, he added, were “a recipe to produce some very critical fire weather conditions”.
LA fire chief Kristin Crowley said the impending winds demanded very close attention. “This wind event is approaching us, and approaching us very, very quickly,” she said, and sought to reassure Los Angelenos that city leaders were “ready for this next event”. Crowley also asked the community to stay informed, “with trusted news and official updates” and “be prepared to evacuate.”
“Follow all evacuation warnings and orders, and without delay, and stay off the roadways and any impacted areas,” Crowley added.
LA county sheriff Robert Luna said the fires weren’t over but “closer to being over” and a curfew was still in effect. Luna said he recognized that many evacuated LA residents were keen to get back to their houses but warned that “a lot of areas look like they were hit by a bomb”. The coroner’s office and the fire department were searching affected areas using cadaver dogs.
“I don’t expect good news from those,” he said.
Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, said on Sunday the fires would be the worst natural disaster in US history, “in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope”.
Newsom told NBC’s Meet the Press he had signed an executive order that would speed up disaster relief for victims. More than 12,300 homes and businesses have been destroyed, and more than 200,000 people displaced.
Meanwhile president-elect Donald Trump, who returns to the White House in eight days, continued to point fingers, taking to his Truth Social platform to level new criticism at Newsom and other California officials for alleged mismanagement before and during the outbreaks.
On Friday, Newsom ordered an inquiry into LA county’s water management after reports emerged that a critical reservoir was offline when the fires started, leaving some emergency hydrants with low water pressure before running dry.
The LA fire chief, Crowley, has been vocal about how water supply issues – and budget cuts – “failed” her firefighters.
Trump and other Republican politicians have singled out the beleaguered Los Angeles mayor, Karen Bass, for signing a budget that stripped $17m from the Los Angeles fire department.
“The fires are still raging in LA. The incompetent pols have no idea how to put them out. What’s wrong with them?” Trump wrote. He has made a succession of false claims aimed at Newsom and other Democrats.
In the NBC interview on Sunday, Newsom called Trump’s false claims “inexcusable”.
“Responding to Donald Trump’s insults, we would spend another month. Every elected official that he disagrees with is very familiar with them. Mis- and disinformation I don’t think advantages or aids any of us.”
Forecasters, meanwhile, said a “red flag” warning would remain in place across Los Angeles county as winds picked up on Sunday, combined with cooler weather, and threatened further devastation.
“Dry vegetation combined with the prolonged extreme fire weather conditions will support rapid spread and erratic behavior of any new or existing fires,” the National Weather Service said in a statement.
A glimmer of hope came with news that the smaller Kenneth fire in Los Angeles and Ventura counties had been completely contained, and the Hurst fire in Los Angeles county was 89% under control.
That will free more of the 14,000 firefighters and other personnel, from multiple states as well as Mexico and Canada, to focus on the more severe, and deadly Palisades and Eaton fires, officials said.
The four fires have consumed about 62 sq miles (160 sq km), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), reported. All the reported deaths came from the Palisades and Eaton fires, which officials said were respectively only 11% and 27% contained by early Sunday.
Deanne Criswell, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), warned Sunday that a significant threat remained.
“The winds are potentially getting dangerous and strong again. I believe the red flag warnings have been put back in place. This is still dangerous, and [people] need to make sure they’re listening to their local officials so they can keep themselves safe,” she told CNN’s State of the Union.
“I know that so many people probably want to get back into the area and check on their homes, but with winds picking back up, you never know which way they’re going to go. So they really need to pay attention, listen to what’s going on so they don’t get in harm’s way.”
Officials issued new evacuation orders for eastern communities threatened by the Palisades fire, including the affluent Brentwood area. The city’s Mandeville Canyon Road is a narrow two-lane road that makes emergency access to, and evacuations from, the area’s pricey homes difficult.
The orders also encompass the Getty Center, which houses a large art collection.
A spokesperson for the J Paul Getty Trust, which funds the museum, said the institution was complying with the evacuation order and is now closed, with only emergency personnel in place.
Edward Helmore contributed reporting