KATHMANDU: Los Angeles County continues to face a catastrophic wildfire crisis.
Fires, including the Palisades and Eaton Fires, have ravaged neighborhoods, caused widespread evacuations, and led to multiple casualties.
These fires are among the deadliest in recent years.
Key Developments:
Casualties: The death toll has risen to at least seven people as authorities recover bodies from devastated homes in Altadena and other affected areas. Thousands of homes and businesses have been destroyed.
Evacuations: More than 180,000 residents have been forced to evacuate as the fires spread rapidly. Communities like Malibu, Hollywood Hills, and Runyon Canyon have been especially hard-hit.
Firefighting Efforts: Over 2,000 firefighters are currently battling the flames, including 780 inmates. Although winds have subsided slightly, strong gusts are expected to return, complicating firefighting operations.
Government Response: President Joe Biden has pledged federal support for disaster relief, including covering emergency response costs and providing temporary shelters for displaced residents. The state of emergency remains in effect.
Current Situation:
The fires have burned over 5,000 structures and continue to threaten more areas.
Emergency services are focusing on evacuation operations while containing the spread of the fires.
Authorities urge residents to stay informed and follow evacuation orders.
Local shelters are accommodating those displaced, and relief efforts are underway.
Photos:
A unidentified woman looks at a house burned by the Palisades Fire on January 9, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. At least five people have been killed, and over 25,000 acres have burned. Over 2,000 structures have also burned and almost 180,000 people are under orders to evacuate. Apu Gomes/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Apu Gomes / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)A house is threatened as the Palisades Fire grows in the mountains in the community of Topanga, California, on January 9, 2025. The two largest fires burning in Los Angeles remain “zero percent” contained on January 9 despite firefighting operations, officials said, as they also vowed to tackle looting of evacuated homes. A 17,000-acre (6,900-hectare) blaze in Pacific Palisades has become “one of the most destructive natural disasters in the history of Los Angeles,” said city fire chief Kristin Crowley, while a 10,000-acre fire in Altadena was also at “zero percent containment,” said county fire chief Anthony Marrone. (Photo by David Swanson / AFP)Danielle Maki (L) and Christy Limon (R) cry while viewing their brother’s burned home during the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles county, California on January 9, 2025. Wildfires threatened to engulf parts of Hollywood on January 9 as a growing number of blazes raged across Los Angeles, forcing over 100,000 people to flee their homes and claiming at least five lives. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP)Family members embrace while viewing their burned home during the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles county, California on January 9, 2025. Wildfires threatened to engulf parts of Hollywood on January 9 as a growing number of blazes raged across Los Angeles, forcing over 100,000 people to flee their homes and claiming at least five lives. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP)Alana Dadoorian searches through the remains of her burned home during the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles county, California on January 9, 2025. Wildfires threatened to engulf parts of Hollywood on January 9 as a growing number of blazes raged across Los Angeles, forcing over 100,000 people to flee their homes and claiming at least five lives. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP)Businesses along Lake Avenue destroyed by the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on January 9, 2025. Wildfires threatened to engulf parts of Hollywood on January 9 as a growing number of blazes raged across Los Angeles, forcing over 100,000 people to flee their homes and claiming at least five lives. (Photo by Zoë Meyers / AFP)Burned houses are seen from the Palisades Fire on January 9, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. At least five people have been killed, and over 25,000 acres have burned. Over 2,000 structures have also burned and almost 180,000 people are under orders to evacuate. Apu Gomes/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Apu Gomes / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)Flames from the Palisades Fire burns a home amid a powerful windstormon January 9, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. At least five people have been killed, and over 25,000 acres have burned. Over 2,000 structures have also burned and almost 180,000 people are under orders to evacuate. Apu Gomes/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Apu Gomes / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
