California Wildfires

Strong winds forecast to return and threaten Los Angeles area's fight against fires

Firefighters are preparing for a return of dangerous winds that could again stoke the wildfires that have ravaged the Los Angeles area.

Additional water tankers and firefighters arrived at the Los Angeles area on Monday ahead of fierce winds that were forecast to return and threaten the progress made so far on two massive infernos that have killed at least 24 people.

Planes doused homes and hillsides with bright pink fire-retardant chemicals, while crews and fire engines were being placed near particularly vulnerable spots with dry brush. Dozens of water trucks rolled in to replenish supplies after hydrants ran dry last week when the two largest fires erupted.

Tabitha Trosen and her boyfriend said she feels like they are “teetering” on the edge with the constant fear that their neighborhood could be the next under threat.

“Our cats are ready to go, we have their carriers by the door prepped with their little stuffed animals and things like that,” Trosen said, adding that she keeps adding things as she thinks about what she could lose. “It’s like, how do I take care of myself, and what are the things that will ground me as a human and remind me of my background and my life and my family.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other officials — who have faced criticism over their initial response to fires that began last week — expressed confidence Monday that the region was ready to face the new threat with additional firefighters brought in from around the U.S., as well as Canada and Mexico.

“We’re absolutely better prepared,” LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said when asked what will be different from a week ago, when hurricane-force winds propelled multiple fires across the parched, brush-filled region that hasn’t seen rain in more than eight months.

The winds are predicted to pick up late Monday into early Tuesday, but they are not expected to reach hurricane-force like last week. However, they could ground firefighting aircraft, Marrone said, warning if winds reach 70 mph (112 kph), “it’s going to be very difficult to contain that fire."

Fire officials advised residents in high-risk areas to just leave home – and not wait for formal evacuation orders -- if they sense danger.

That’s exactly what Tim Kang of La Crescenta did last Wednesday. Feeling sick from the smoky air and fearful of nearby fires spreading, Kang and his brothers packed up and have stayed away from their neighborhood.

“Everything just felt like, ‘Oh man, the world’s ending,’” said Kang, who's staying with his girlfriend in Pasadena.

In less than a week, four fires around the nation’s second-biggest city have scorched more than 62 square miles (160 square kilometers), roughly three times the size of Manhattan.

The National Weather Service warned the weather will be “particularly dangerous” on Tuesday, when wind gusts could reach 65 mph (105 kph). A large part of Southern California around Los Angeles is under this extreme fire danger warning through Wednesday, including densely populated Thousand Oaks, Northridge and Simi Valley.

The Eaton Fire near Pasadena is roughly one-third contained, while the largest blaze in Pacific Palisades on the coast is far less contained.

Etienne Laurent/AFP via Getty Images
Evacuees from the Eaton Fire dwell among heaps of clothes displayed on the ground at a donation center in Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, on Jan. 13, 2025.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Patrick O’Neal sifts through his home after it was destroyed by the Palisades wildfire on Jan. 13, 2025 in Malibu.
Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty Images
A burnt out school bus is seen at the fire-damaged Aveson Charter School from the aftermath of the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Jan. 13, 2025.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
A view of debris of Paris Hilton’s house at Malibu Beach during ‘Palisades Fire’ in Los Angeles, California, United States on January 12, 2025.
Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Firefighters near burn scars in the aftermath of the Palisades Fire in the Mandeville Canyon neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, US, on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
A view of burnt a car at Topanga Canyon during Palisades wildfire in on Jan. 10, 2025.
AP Photo/John Locher
Luke Dexter kneels as he sifts through the remains of his father’s fire-ravaged beach front property in the aftermath of the Palisades Fire on Jan. 10, 2025, in Malibu.
AP Photo/Chris Pizzello
A firefighter clears away smoking debris at the site of a structure on Lake Avenue destroyed by the Eaton Fire, Jan. 10, 2025, in Altadena.
Jae C. Hong/AP
A person walks amid the destruction left behind by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
Residents search for valuables among the rubbles of their burnt houses in Altadena of Los Angeles County, California, United States on January 9, 2025.
Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images
Firefighters from the Los Angeles County Fire Department stand vigilant as they battle wildfires in Los Angeles while several blazes continue to tear through the region on January 10, 2025.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
A view of flames at the mountain as seen from Topanga Canyon near Pacific Palisades in Topanga, Los Angeles, California, United States on January 9, 2025.
JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images
An air tanker drops fire retardant on the Kenneth fire in the Calabasas area on Jan. 9, 2025.
AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
Homes are seen burned while a few still stand, Jan. 9, 2025, in the Pacific Palisades.
Christina House / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
William Harris, 63, assesses the damage of his home that was burned down by the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Jan. 9, 2025.
David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images
A house is threatened as the Palisades Fire grows in the mountains in Topanga on Jan. 9, 2025.
oë Meyers / AFP via Getty Images
Businesses along Lake Avenue destroyed by the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on January 9, 2025.
Michael Nigro/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Firefighters work to extinguish spot fires on a hillside during the Sunset Fire in Los Angeles, California, US, on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025.
Ethan Swope/AP
Megan Mantia, left, and her boyfriend Thomas, only first game given, return to Mantia’s fire-damaged home after the Eaton Fire swept through the area, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, Calif.
Ethan Swope/AP
A firefighter battles the Eaton Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif.
Photo by Official Flickr Account of CAL FIRE / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
A view of the coast as flames rage across Los Angeles, California, United States on January 09, 2025.
Ethan Swope/AP
The Eaton Fire burns a vehicle Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
A firefighting helicopter drops water as the Sunset Fire burns in the Hollywood Hills on Jan. 8, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
Mark J. Terrill/AP
The Palisades Fire burns homes on a hilltop in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Cars destroyed by the Eaton Fire sit in the parking area of a burned auto shop on Jan. 08, 2025 in Altadena.
Robyn Beck / AFP via Getty Images
A home burns during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Jan. 8, 2025.
Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Vehicles burn during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.
Robyn Beck / AFP via Getty Images
Police officers remove an elderly resident from her home during the Eaton Fire on January 8, 2025.
Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A home is fully engulfed by the Palisades fire along Haverford Avenue in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Brothers Glenn Watson, left, and his brother Wes, return to their Pacific Palisades neighborhood to view the damage from the Palisades fire on Jan. 7, 2025.
David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
Luxury beachfront homes go up in flames in Malibu along Pacific Coast Highway near Carbon Canyon Road in the Palisades Fire on Jan. 8, 2025.
Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A palm tree burns during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7, 2025.
David McNew/Getty Images
Strong winds blow embers from homes burning in the Eaton Fire on Jan. 7, 2025 in Pasadena.
Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A staircase left standing after a house burned during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
Eric Thayer/Getty Images
Firefighters stage during the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades.
AP Photo/Ethan Swope
The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
AP Photo/Etienne Laurent
A person tries to hose down embers from the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
Eric Thayer/Getty Images
Firefighters battle flames from the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades.
Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images
Flames from a brush fire pushed by gusting Santa Ana winds burn a home on Jan. 7, 2025 in Pacific Palisades.
Etienne Laurent/AP
A firefighter battles the advancing Palisades Fire as it burns a structure in the Pacific Palisades Jan. 7, 2025.
Michael Kovac/Getty Images
Smoke from the Palisades Fire fills the sky as seen from Santa Monica Beach, with the Santa Monica Pier and Ferris Wheel in the foreground on Jan. 7, 2025.
Jonathan Lopez
This image of the Palisades Fire was captured from a vantage point at the Centinela Hospital
Medical Center in Inglewood.
Mirella Rodriguez
A distant view of the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7, 2025.
NBCLA
A car burns during the Pacific Palisades fire on Jan. 7, 2025.
David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
Lifeguard towers go up in flames along Malibu beach in the Palisades Fire on Jan. 7, 2025.
Erika Robles
A view of the Palisades Fire from East Los Angeles on Jan. 7, 2025.
Rod and Jennifer Taylor
Smoke rises over a hill in the Pacific Palisades area.
NBCLA
Smoke from the Palisades Fire as seen from LAX Jan. 7, 2025.
NBCLA
A view of flames Jan. 7, 2025 in Pacific Palisades.
NBCLA
A view of flames Jan. 7, 2025 in Pacific Palisades.
A view of the Palisades Fire on the LA County coast Jan. 7, 2025.
David Swanson / AFP via Getty Images
Firefighters run as a brush fire burns in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
David Swanson / AFP via Getty Images
A brush fire burns near homes in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
People watch the Palisades fire from the California Incline in Santa Monica on Jan. 7, 2025.
A house burns in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
NBCLA
A fire department bulldozer moves abandoned cars in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
A view of Santa Monica Pier with smoke from the Palisades Fire in the background on Jan. 7, 2025.
Getty
People evacuate along Sunset Boulevard as the Palisades Fire burns amid a powerful windstorm on Jan. 7, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood.
Michael Kovac/Getty Images
Smoke and fire from the Palisades Fire fills the Santa Monica skyline as seen from Santa Monica Beach on Jan. 7, 2025.
David Swanson / AFP via Getty Images
A brush fire burns near homes in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A firefighter battles the blaze on El Medio Avenue during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7, 2025.
Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A firefighter in front of a burning structure during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7, 2025.
Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images
A playground burns in a residential neighborhood during the Eaton fire in Pasadena on Jan. 7, 2025.
Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Firefighters battle flames during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7, 2025.
Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images
Elderly patients are quickly evacuated into an armored vehicle as embers and flames approach during the Eaton fire in Pasadena on Jan. 7, 2025.
Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images
Elderly patients are quickly evacuated into emergency vehicles as embers and flames approach during the Eaton fire in Pasadena on Jan. 7, 2025.
Nick Ut/Getty Images
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA – January 08: A house is on fire from the Eaton Fire in the Altadena neighborhood on January 08, 2025 in PASADENA, CALIFORNIA.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES – JANUARY 8: A house in on fire as residents try to escape the site in Pacific Palisades, California, Los Angeles, United States on January 8, 2025. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images
File. A house in on fire as residents try to escape the site in Pacific Palisades, California, Los Angeles, United States on January 8, 2025. A fast-moving wildfire has forced 30,000 people to evacuate, with officials warning that worsening winds could further escalate the blaze.
Nick Ut/Getty Images
A firefighter sprays water on a house to protect it from the Eaton Fire in the Altadena neighborhood on January 08, 2025 in PASADENA, CALIFORNIA. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the death toll has risen, confirming three more people have died. Additionally, an undetermined amount of homes and businesses have been destroyed. (Photo by Nick Ut/Getty Images)

Searching for victims continues

The death toll is likely to rise, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Monday. At least two dozen were missing, he said.

Luna said he understands that people are eager to return to their homes and neighborhoods to survey the damage, but he asked for their patience. "We have people literally looking for the remains of your neighbors,” he said.

Checking on their homes

The slower winds over the weekend allowed some people to return to previously evacuated areas. Many had no idea if their homes or neighborhoods were still standing.

Jim Orlandini, who lost his hardware store in Altadena, a hard-hit neighborhood next to Pasadena, said his home of 40 years survived.

“The whole time I was thinking, I don’t know what I’m going to find when I get back here and after 40 years, you know, you got a lot of stuff you forget about that would disappear if the house burned down. So we’re thankful that it didn’t.”

Warnings to stay out of disaster zones

LA city Fire Chief Kristin Crowley urged people to stay away from burned neighborhoods filled with broken gas lines and unstable buildings.

She also said Monday that people should not hesitate to leave if fires are near, even without an evacuation order.

″Be ready. And you do not have to wait, you do not have to wait for the order,” Crowley said.

Just under 100,000 in Los Angeles County remained under evacuation orders, half the number from last week.

Altadena residents are mourning the loss of the city's historic Black neighborhoods. Many are now concerned what those communities will look like going forward. Velena Jones reports.

Fighting flames on multiple fronts

Crews from across California and nine other states are helping to fight the blazes. The force includes nearly 1,400 fire engines, 84 aircraft and more than 14,000 personnel, including crews from as far away as South Africa.

President Joe Biden said Monday that he directed hundreds of federal personnel to aid in fighting the fires and supporting survivors and hard-hit communities.

Firefighters over the weekend fought flames in Mandeville Canyon — home to Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities — after the Palisades Fire spread, prompting new evacuation orders. Crews continued battling there Monday before potentially strong winds could push the flames toward the famous J. Paul Getty Museum and the University of California, Los Angeles.

Beyoncé, Disney and other celebrities and entertainment organizations have pledged millions to help those who have been displaced or lost their homes. Other stars — and ordinary people — have left large donations of clothing and other items along street corners in around the city.

Investigating looting, fundraising scams

Dozens of people have been arrested for looting after the wildfires. Officials are now starting to see price gouging and scams, including with hotels and short-term rentals and medical supplies, said Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman. Scammers are also contacting people for fake fundraising efforts.

Counting up and investigating the destruction

The fires that began Tuesday north of downtown LA have burned more than 12,000 homes, cars and other structures.

Authorities haven’t determined an official cause for any of the fires. Southern California Edison has acknowledged agencies are investigating whether its equipment may have started a smaller blaze.

lawsuit filed Monday claims the utility's equipment sparked the much bigger Eaton Fire. Edison did not immediately respond to a request for comment and last week said it had not received any suggestions that its equipment ignited that blaze.

AccuWeather’s early estimates suggest the fires could be the nation’s costliest ever, topping $250 billion including what’s to come in the next days.

___

Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York, Sophia Tareen in Chicago, Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia, and Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyoming, contributed.

Copyright The Associated Press
Exit mobile version