LA is fighting historically destructive wildfires

Los Angeles County firefighters are struggling to handle a series of ongoing and deadly wildfires, which have grown more dangerous and destructive in recent days due to a powerful windstorm.

What’s going on? As of yesterday evening, there were six wildfires raging across Los Angeles county: the larger Palisades and Eaton fires (covering 10,000+ acres apiece), as well as four smaller blazes covering ~500 acres or less. Local firefighters are struggling to handle the fast-moving fires, which were all 0% contained as of last night.

• Officials said the Eaton fire had caused at least five deaths, while the Palisades fire had destroyed 1,000+ structures to become the most destructive fire in city history.
• First responders and a “high number” of residents who didn’t evacuate their homes have also suffered significant injuries from the blazes, per local authorities.
• 150,000+ local residents have received evacuation orders, per a CNN analysis. That includes members of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, which features some of LA’s wealthiest residents.

👀 Looking ahead…Firefighters are working around the clock to contain the fires – though progress has been slow due to empty fire hydrants and near hurricane-level winds (up to 60 MPH), which are expected to continue through today.