The Palisades and Eaton wildfires have been burning Southern California, including Los Angeles, for over a week, and the conditions are only deteriorating. There is fear that fresh gusts of winds will lead to new blazes in the affected area, which is already in a pretty bad state at the moment. It, therefore, became evident the risk was creeping in when, on Tuesday, tens of millions of residents in the area were given new fire alerts. Due to the increasing severity of these fires and the unpredictable wind, there have been increased worrisome signals from the authorities.
Aside from new fires, about 90,000 houses in California have also been blacked out, since electricity firms have preemptively cut power lines to avoid sparks which may kindle fires. The Santa Ana winds, which are strong enough to trigger more wildfires, continued blowing at night and are set to last until Wednesday morning. LA city fire chief Kristin Crowley also emphasized the expected risk, saying that “life threatening, destructive and widespread winds are already here.”
Latest reports estimate that at least 25 people have died, and the situation is still tense. Officials are encouraging people living in Southern California to be ready to be evacuated due to the continued risk from the dry winds. Residents have also been discouraged from engaging in activities that could cause fire chances purposely, for instance, the use of equipment that causes sparks or flames.
The fire season is not over yet, and with such temperatures and wind the situation in Southern California stays critical. The next days might be critical for deciding whether authorities can manage the fires and avoid further destruction.
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