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Firefighters have made progress battling the smaller blazes around Los Angeles, however, the largest fires remain uncontained, and forecast winds threaten to worsen the situation heading into Friday local time.
Officials expect the death toll to rise as LA faces the most destructive fires in its history.
Here’s what you need to know:
- Ten people have died, with the death toll expected to rise when firefighters can access already burnt areas.
- The two largest fires – Palisades and Eaton – are still spreading, but the former is now 6 per cent contained. The newest blaze, the Kenneth fire, is also uncontained and expanding rapidly, while the Hurst fire is 37 per cent contained.
- The Lidia fire is now mostly contained, while firefighters have completely contained the Sunset fire, which threatened Hollywood and Hollywood Hills and the Woodley fire.
- More than 10,000 structures including countless homes have been destroyed.
- Police have made 20 arrests, 12 of which are linked to looting. Curfews are in place in the worst affected areas of the Palisades and Altadena.
- Movie stars and celebrities – including Paris Hilton, Billy Crystal and Eugene Levy – have lost homes in the fires.
- The blazes were fuelled by the powerful Santa Ana winds, which blew with hurricane strength through parts of California that hadn’t experienced rain for several months.
The death toll from wildfires in Los Angeles has risen from seven to 10, Los Angeles County’s Medical Examiner said in an update late on Thursday local time.
The examiner has received notification of 10 fire-related deaths as of 9pm January 9, a statement confirmed.
All ten of the victims announced so far are yet to be formally identified.
The statement continues that identifying all victims could take several weeks because of the fire conditions and safety concerns.
“Please also keep in mind, traditional means of identification such as fingerprinting and visual identification may not be available and will add more time for naming these deceased,” the statement read.
“The Department of Medical Examiner understands how important it is to identify those lost in the wildfires and is working diligently, while following safety protocols, to provide the information to the next of kin as soon as reasonably possible.”
With Reuters
Police are investigating a possible arson relating to the Kenneth fire, taking a man into custody.
The Washington Post reports that Captain Robert Yoos of the Ventura County Sherriff’s Office confirmed the Los Angeles Police Department had arrested and detained an individual in relation to a suspected arson.
The Kenneth fire is currently threatening properties in the affluent Calabasas area of Los Angeles, the spreading is uncontained.
Evacuation orders and warnings are in place for much of the region.
New pictures from the frontlines of the Kenneth Fire show firefighters heading in to battle the expanding blaze bordering the Calabasas neighbourhood of Los Angeles.
Video has emerged reportedly showing the moment the deadly Palisades fire started burning in Los Angeles on Tuesday local time.
Footage captured by Airline Videos, an LAX-based media outlet that livestreams videos of planes at the airport, shows the first plumes of smoke billowing from hills beyond the runway as an aircraft lands.
Throughout the video, smoke can be seen growing thicker as the fire rapidly spreads.
“Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh, not something we want to see here in Southern California,” a man can be heard saying after spotting the blaze.
The cause of the wildfires is under investigation.
“We hope it helps with the investigation into what sparked the fire above Pacific Palisades that morning,” a post sharing the video to X on Thursday local time read.
This remarkable footage of water drops demonstrates how effective the strategy can be in extinguishing flames.
Aerial operations were not possible for much of the early spread of the fire because of the severe winds, which is part of what allowed for the devastation to spread so quickly in the Palisades and Eaton fires.
Prince Harry and Meghan have urged Californians to open their homes to those in need as the deadly Los Angeles wildfires continue to burn.
In a statement, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who live in Montecito near Santa Barbara, asked people to consider donating clothing, children’s toys and other essential items.
Prince Harry and Meghan have urged Californians to open their homes to friends in need.Credit: nnakapreston
“If a friend, loved one, or pet has to evacuate and you are able to offer them a safe haven in your home, please do. And be sure to check in with any disabled or elderly neighbours to see if they need help evacuating,” the couple said.
“Some families and people have been left with nothing. Please consider donating clothing, children’s toys & clothing, and other essentials.”
The couple have reportedly opened their home to friends forced to evacuate because of the wildfires.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has touted his government’s climate change response in answering a question about the Los Angeles wildfires.
Speaking at a West Australian press conference, Albanese said the first reaction to a tragedy like this was always a human one, noting the trauma of those who have lost their loved ones and homes. But he also touched on the environmental and economic damage of extreme weather events.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to media in Perth.Credit: Getty Images
“The idea that you can just dismiss that impact on the economy is not right. The economic cost of rebuilding in areas impacted by extreme weather events, whether it be the bushfires in 2019-20, whether it be the flooding that impacted in WA,” Albanese said.
“We need to not dismiss climate change as not being associated with the economy. It is.”
The prime minister used the opportunity to promote his government’s climate change response, claiming it would deliver opportunities for “new industry, new jobs and new growth”.
“There is no country better positioned to benefit from, for example, the minerals that will power the world in the 21st century than Australia,” he said.
“Action on climate change is not only good for the environment, it is good for the economy, and good for jobs as well.”
In some welcome news amidst the devastation, the Palisades fire is now 6 per cent contained. The fire is still expanding, however, currently covering around 8000 hectares, (just under 20,000 acres).
The containment number doesn’t describe the amount of the fire that has been extinguished, but rather the amount of the perimeter that has been secured.
The 6 per cent containment figure for the Palisades fire means that 6 per cent of the boundary of the fire is not at risk of spreading further. The New York Times explains that this could be due to meeting a natural barrier like a river or highway, vegetation being previously scorched, or other firefighting tactics including dug-out trenches.
The devastation from the Palisades fire is seen from the air in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood of Los Angeles.Credit: AP
Already the worst fire in California’s history, the Palisades has destroyed more than 5000 structures and killed at least two people.
California Governor Gavin Newsom celebrated the development on social media, thanking “brave” firefighters for “working around the clock to combat the blaze”.
As firefighters face water shortages and resourcing issues in their efforts to combat the Los Angeles wildfires, a political firestorm is brewing over budget cuts made to the Los Angeles Fire Department in the last financial year.
Overall, the funding for the Los Angeles Fire Department decreased by 2 per cent or $US17.6 million from the 2023-24 to the 2024-25 fiscal years, but this cut does not include the November approval of a four-year $US203 million contract with the firefighters’ union to boost wages and health benefits for staff.
Los Angeles Fire Department chief Kristin Crowley addresses the media alongside Mayor Karen Bass (left).
LAFD chief Kristin Crowley was asked about a memo she wrote to the Board of Fire Commissioners in December 2024 that warned the budget cuts had “adversely affected the Department’s ability to maintain core operations”.
She wrote that a $US7 million cut to overtime funding had “severely limited the Department’s capacity to prepare for, train for, and respond to large-scale emergencies”.
At the press conference, Crowley said the LAFD had “refocused its effort to utilise the budget we had allotted”.
“We focused back on number one fundamentals in regard to emergency operations and training. We made our adjustments. We’re working closely with Mayor [Karen] Bass. She’s supporting us on this,” Crowley said.
Meanwhile, Bass claimed the budget cuts weren’t relevant to the current emergency response.
“We were in tough budgetary times, everybody knew that, but the impact of our budget really did not impact what we’ve been going through over the last few days,” she said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom in a social media post on Thursday evening said 900 additional firefighters were now being deployed to battle the fast-moving Kenneth fire near the West Hills and Calabasas.
The fire ballooned in size – charring more than 2.6 square kilometres – within hours of igniting.
AP
