On January 15 (local time), Los Angeles firefighters (USA) continued to face dry and strong winds, increasing two large fires that have lasted for the past 8 days, causing one of the worst disasters in the history of this city.
About 6.5 million people live in areas at high risk of fire, according to authorities. The fires have burned an area nearly the size of Washington, D.C., killing at least 25 people and destroying more than 12,000 homes and other structures.
Lindsey Horvath, a local official, urged residents to be ready to evacuate immediately if necessary. Although winds have not yet reached the forecast 70 mph, firefighters have recorded winds of 30 to 40 mph combined with low humidity in an area that has not seen significant rainfall in nine months.
As of January 15, about 82,400 people had been ordered to evacuate, while another 90,400 were warned to leave their homes at any time. Burned neighborhoods left behind a landscape of ash and charred chimneys.
The two largest fires, the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire, are still not fully contained. The Palisades Fire has burned 37 square miles and is only 19 percent contained. Meanwhile, the Eaton Fire, east of the city, has burned 22 square miles and is 45 percent contained.
Firefighters from the United States, Canada and Mexico have been working together to stop the spread of the fires. Planes and helicopters have been dropping water and fire retardant into the rugged mountainous terrain, supporting firefighting teams on the ground. Pilot Diego Calderoni said that flying a firefighting plane is a matter of experience and a sense of the difficult conditions.
A new fire also broke out in San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles, on January 15. Meanwhile, two other fires in Southern California have been largely contained.
Despite the challenges of the fires, the local community is also trying to get back to normal. Students and teachers from Palisades Charter Elementary School, which was affected by the wildfires, have been relocated to Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet. “Even though we lost the school, we still have the community and we will rebuild,” said Principal Juliet Herman.
However, the city’s preparedness for the wildfires has come under question, with local media criticizing the fire service for not retaining 1,000 firefighters after their initial shift last week as the blazes began to spread.
Responding to criticism, Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said it was difficult to predict exactly where a fire would start, and she stressed that some firefighters needed to stay on to handle other emergency calls in the city.
Still, the debate only highlights the challenges firefighters face in protecting people and property from increasingly severe natural disasters.
