“With these very calm winds this morning, I think we can actually make progress and turn a corner and start to contain these fires,” Cal Fire Battalion Chief Brent Pascua said. said Today’s show THURSDAY.
So far, the response to the disaster has been marred by misinformation and controversy. After some fire hydrants ran dry, President-elect Donald Trump baselessly accused California Gov. Gavin Newsom of mismanaging the state’s water supplies to save an endangered fish.
City workers have now been able to reach three water tanks on the hills near the Palisades fire to build up pressure. This allows the tanks to be filled more quickly so the hydrants can continue to be supplied, Stewart says. Each tank can hold 1 million gallons. “We have fire hydrants that are working at full flow,” she said.
More firefighters began arriving from Utah, Oregon, Arizona, Washington and New Mexico. Several dozen task forces are on the way, according to Stewart, each with five fire engines and a command vehicle.
The planes resumed flying on Wednesday. Twelve helicopters fill huge buckets of water suspended from cables and suck up the seawater using snorkels. Six planes are also working on the fires, including two “super scoop” planes that have been flying over the surface of the Pacific to scoop up water. Helicopters and bailer planes drop water on spot fires, allowing firefighters to get closer and put them out.
Meanwhile, other planes drop fire retardants before the inferno, covering the potential fuel with a layer of nonflammable chemicals and slowing its progress. A C-130 cargo plane acquired by Cal Fire from the Coast Guard and upgraded this summer can dump 4,000 gallons of retardant. This gives firefighters time to dig and bulldoze the bare ground firebreaks.
With the ocean limiting the Palisades Fire to the south, responders will try to keep it from spreading to the east or west. “The real spread will be on the flank,” says Pimlott.
A red warning signal for increased fire risk will remain in effect until Friday, with humidity levels at just 8 to 12 percent. California experienced an abnormally dry winter, with 40 percent of the state in drought.
“Fuels remain extremely dry,” Cal Fire’s James Magana said during a briefing Thursday morning. “You can expect to see critical spread rates, particularly on ridge tops or drainages aligned with the wind. »
On Saturday, the winds are expected to reverse. If firefighters are not prepared, the tail of the fire could become the front and spread north.
Even once they are able to contain the fire with a ring of firebreaks and natural barriers, the task will not be complete. Firefighters will have to put out small fires in this area.
“This is a critical step, to mop up those hot spots or anything that could reignite if the winds were to increase again,” says Upton.
Going forward, the city will need to clean up debris, restore utilities and analyze environmental damage before allowing people to leave. Because the canyons are devoid of trees and vegetation that hold the soil together, mudslides could become a threat once the rains return.
Los Angeles will face the prospect of rebuilding destroyed communities. This is an opportunity to make them less vulnerable to the next fire, says Max Moritz, a wildfire specialist with the University of California Cooperative Extension.
Although homes in many cases must be constructed of fire-resistant materials, California law is silent on how they must be constructed. Techniques such as grouping houses together rather than scattering them among trees can make them easier to defend against fires and evacuate, he says.
“It’s part of the hope that we can do some things better, smarter and safer,” Moritz says.
Updated 01/10/2024 at 1:10 a.m. GMT: The number of structures destroyed has been updated.
