Los Angeles, CA – A wave of wildfires continues to wreak havoc across Los Angeles County, with the death toll now reaching 10, according to the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office on Friday. The fires, fueled by high winds, have entered their fourth destructive day, devastating entire neighborhoods and leading to the destruction of over 10,000 homes and buildings.
Firefighters are confronted with multiple fires, including the newly ignited Kenneth Fire in the San Fernando Valley, which threatened a school doubling as a makeshift shelter before moving towards Ventura. As of Friday morning, the Kenneth Fire was 35 percent contained. The Palisades Fire, near the coast, stood at 8 percent containment, while the Eaton Fire north of Pasadena has yet to be contained. The Hurst Fire, located south of Santa Clarita, was 37 percent contained.
Efforts to control the Palisades Fire were hampered Thursday when hurricane-force winds, gusting up to 99 miles per hour, spread embers indiscriminately. Complicating matters, one firefighting aircraft was grounded after a collision with a civilian-operated drone. California National Guard troops have been deployed to support road closures and reinforce law enforcement in Altadena, where officials are also combating looting, resulting in 20 arrests this week.
The Palisades Fire has earned the grim distinction of being the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history, laying waste to over 5,300 structures and forcing many residents into flight, with some abandoning their vehicles to escape on foot as the flames advanced.
The monstrous Eaton Fire has consumed approximately 13,960 acres and 5,000 structures. Collectively, the blazes have scorched about 36,000 acres—an area comparable in size to Miami or twice the size of Manhattan.
Financial analysts from Accuweather have dramatically increased their estimates of the fiscal damages from these fires, projecting economic losses between $135 billion and $150 billion, marking these fires among the most costly and destructive in history.
In a broader environmental context, weather agencies confirmed on Friday that 2024 has become the hottest year on record for the planet, surpassing the long-term warming limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius set by climate scientists. This record-setting heat has only contributed to the ferocity and frequency of such wildfire outbreaks.
As the community grapples with this ongoing disaster, aid organizations and governmental agencies continue to focus on evacuation efforts and firefighting strategies, hoping for a break in the weather that might help bring these relentless fires under control.