LOS ANGELES, California, January 8, 2025 (ENS) – Major wildfires are racing across parts of Southern California today, after erupting Tuesday, causing thousands of terrified residents to evacuate their homes moments ahead of the leaping flames. Five civilians have died and many more have been hurt in the wind-driven fires that spread quickly overnight and are still burning out of control today on two sides of Los Angeles County.
The Eaton Fire, which is devouring parts of the Angeles National Forest, Altadena and Pasadena, exploded from around 2,000 acres to 10,600 acres by Wednesday morning, officials said.
Firefighters working aggressively to slow the spread and protect critical infrastructure under extreme conditions, still lost multiple structures, homes and businesses that were damaged or destroyed – and the wind-driven brush fire continues. In fact, Red Flag high wind conditions are expected to continue until Thursday evening. The combination of low humidity, dry fuels, and shifting winds has heightened the potential for spot fires and rapid expansion.
Los Angeles County Fire Department officials initially said the Eaton fire had caused two deaths and a “number of significant injuries.” Later officials raised the death toll to five, saying that five bodies were found in three structures in Altadena.
Causes of death have not been determined, L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said at a Wednesday evening news conference. The agency has requested K-9s specializing in human-remains detection would be assigned to the fire situation to ensure no one is unaccounted for, Marrone said.
The fast-moving fire broke out Tuesday night in the hills above Altadena near Eaton Canyon, initially burning more than 400 acres and resulting in mandatory evacuations in parts of Pasadena, eastern Glendale, all of La Cañada Flintridge and northern Monrovia.
Gusts of hurricane-strength winds are spreading the current fires: not only the flames of the Eaton fire, but also the Palisades fire in the upscale Pacific Palisades neighborhood, the Hurst fire in the Sylmar area, and the small Tyler fire in Riverside County.
The Sunset Fire broke out Wednesday evening amongst the mansions perched on the Hollywood Hills, triggering another round of mandatory evacuations.
Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued north to Mulholland Drive, east to Kenter Avenue and south to Pacific Coast Highway. About 30,000 residents had been evacuated from 10,000 households, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell told reporters.
The Hurst Fire erupted in the Sylmar neighborhood of Los Angeles late Tuesday night and quickly consumed hundreds of acres, forcing some evacuations, Cal Fire said.
The Palisades fire started around 10:30 Tuesday morning near homes in Los Angeles’ Pacific Palisades neighborhood. Extreme winds accelerated the fire, prompting mandatory evacuations that jammed neighborhood roads as residents fled the flames destroying their homes
Chief Marrone said the devastating Palisades Fire also is still burning out of control with no containment. That fire sparked around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in an area of the Santa Monica Mountains near the Pacific Ocean, just south of Malibu.
President Joe Biden is being frequently briefed on the fires and has offered immediate federal help, saying, “My team and I are in touch with state and local officials, and I have offered any federal assistance that is needed to help suppress the terrible Pacific Palisades fire,” Biden said
“Earlier tonight, FEMA approved a Fire Management Assistance Grant to support areas that are impacted and help reimburse the state of California for the immediate firefighting costs. My Administration will do everything it can to support the response,” he promised.
There is a little good news amongst the flames. Trees and brush on the grounds of the famous Getty Villa Museum on the Pacific Coast Highway were burning as of Tuesday evening, but the museum says the Villa and its collection of 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities has so far been spared.
“Fortunately, Getty had made extensive efforts to clear brush from the surrounding area as part of its fire mitigation efforts throughout the year,” the museum said online. “Some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but no structures are on fire, and staff and the collection remain safe. Additional fire prevention measures in place at the Villa include water storage on-site. Irrigation was immediately deployed throughout the grounds Tuesday morning. Museum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air handling systems. The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections.”
All schools will be closed Wednesday in the Pasadena Unified School District because of the fire. Several other school districts including Alhambra, Glendale, Burbank, San Marino and South Pasadena are also closing.
The Hurst fire erupted Tuesday night, burning more than 500 acres by about 2 a.m. and threatening areas of Sylmar, a leafy suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley.
Mandatory evacuation orders are in place for north of the 210 Freeway from Roxford to the Interstate 5 / 14 Freeway split. Evacuation centers have been set up at the Ritchie Valens Recreation Center, at 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd. in Pacoima; Northridge Park, 10120 Reseda Blvd. in Northridge; and the Sepulveda Recreation Center, at 8825 Kester Ave. in Panorama City.
Featured image: The Eaton Fire devours a Los Angeles neighborhood, causing two deaths. January 7, 2025 (Photo by Andrew Kachan via Threads)
