Winds are expected to increase early Wednesday morning in the Los Angeles area, the National Weather Service said Tuesday, posing challenges for firefighters trying to extinguish raging, out-of-control blazes that have killed at least 25 people and left at least another 24 missing.
Winds were weaker than expected during the day Tuesday, but the strongest winds are expected Wednesday between 3 a.m. and 3 p.m. local time, according to the weather service.
“Not quite out of the woods yet,” the weather service’s Los Angeles office said in a post on X. “Red Flag Warnings remain in play. Stay aware of your surroundings.”
About 88,000 people remain under evacuation orders with another nearly 85,000 being warned they might be ordered to evacuate. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna encouraged people to consider leaving when they get a warning without waiting for an order. He said deputies have had to rescue many people who waited until the last minute after receiving orders.
Winds began to increase in Southern California on Tuesday morning. The National Weather Service posted a rare red flag warning for “particularly dangerous” weather that could lead to “explosive fire growth.”
Millions of people across the region faced the new wildfire warnings on Tuesday, as electricity was shut off for tens of thousands of people to prevent power lines from sparking new fires.
Forecasters said wind gusts in Los Angeles and Ventura counties could hit about 70 to 110 kilometers an hour, with the fires also boosted by low humidity. The same conditions are expected to continue into Wednesday.
The winds could strengthen parts of the two major blazes that are still burning in Los Angeles County, undermining the incremental gains that firefighters have made in controlling the fires or igniting new ones.
Authorities said one of the blazes, the Palisades fire, was larger than 9,300 hectares but only 17% contained as of early Tuesday, while the Eaton fire, containing more than 5,600 hectares, was 35% contained.
More than 100,000 people have been forced from their homes and whole neighborhoods flattened, much like the war zones American television viewers have become accustomed to seeing in Ukraine and Gaza.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told reporters she took an aerial tour of the affected areas on Monday with Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, saying, “The massive, massive destruction is unimaginable until you actually see it.”
Anish Mahajan, a Los Angeles County public health official, told residents to wear N95 or P100 masks if they see high winds dispersing ash. “Ash is not just dirt,” Mahajan said. “It is hazardous fine dust.”
One concern is that electrical infrastructure could spark new fires, as has happened in California wildfires in the past. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said Monday night that it could shut off power for customers in areas with high fire risk as a precautionary measure. Another utility, Southern California Edison, said it had already shut off power to more than 60,000 customers.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said Monday that firefighters were “absolutely better prepared” than when a series of wildfires rapidly emerged last week, but that the wind gusts could force authorities to ground aircraft critical to the firefighting effort.
In photos: Scale of devastation from California wildfires
Such restrictions were in place for part of last week as four major fires burned. Together, those blazes scorched more than 160 square kilometers.
Firefighters have brought one fire fully under control, while another north of Los Angeles was 97% contained.
President Joe Biden on Monday pledged additional federal support and said during a briefing at the White House, “We’re going to keep doing everything possible to help you get through this.”
“It was a heartbreaking weekend for a lot of people in Los Angeles,” Biden said. “Ash was raining down like snow; homes burned to the ground. Thousands of those homes are gone. And we learned we lost more of our fellow Americans. So, let’s say again to the people of Los Angeles, we’re with you.”
The president also praised the work of emergency responders.
“Los Angeles is the City of Angels, and you’re now the angels,” Biden said. “You’re the angels literally saving people’s lives, and we owe you.”
Biden said the federal government was providing aid to help with overtime pay for firefighters, debris removal and temporary shelters. He said the region will need tens of billions of dollars to recover and called on Congress to “step up” and provide funding.
Some Republican leaders in Congress have suggested federal aid be given only with conditions, as they criticized Democratic California leaders for what they allege is mismanaging water and forest resources.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has said in recent days that the state has increased its firefighter force and forest management efforts since he took office in 2019.
On Monday, a lawsuit filed against Southern California Edison claims the utility’s equipment sparked the deadly Eaton Fire that began Jan. 7.
Edison acknowledged that fire agencies are investigating whether its equipment may have started a smaller fire in the area that also occurred that day.
Authorities have not yet determined an official cause for the fire.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power also was sued on Monday. The suit claims that the utility failed to properly manage water supplies critical to fighting the Palisades Fire, which has killed at least eight people and destroyed thousands of structures, according to the court filing.
Some information in this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
