After snatching 5 lives and destroying hundreds of homes, the California wildfires continue to rage. A large portion of the Los Angeles area is already covered with ashes and smoke as the fires continue to spread across four locations. But the Pacific Palisades fire is the biggest of them all. Here’s what you need to know about the Palisades Fire.
The Pacific Palisades, a high-brow residential area, lies between the Pacific Ocean and the mountains of Santa Monica. The choice area, aside from its affluent residents and expensive mansions, is one of the most desirable destinations in California. Its amazing beaches, hiking trails, and coastline views have made it a paradise.
But right now, the once-enviable area has become a shadow of itself. Wildfires, which have reduced much of the area to massive debris, are still spreading fast. It has covered about 16,000 acres so far and together with the other fires, are moving at the rate of five football fields every minute.
The Palisades Fire began on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, at about 10:20 a.m. Local officials are still struggling to pinpoint its exact cause. It began as a brush fire. But by Wednesday afternoon, to the amazement of authorities, its red-hot blazes had ravaged over 15,000 acres.
Alongside the Pacific Palisades Fires are three others. The Eaton Fire, which started Tuesday night in the national forests of downtown Los Angeles, had eaten up at least 10,000 acres as of Wednesday. The Sunset Fire, which began before 6 p.m. on Wednesday, started from the Hollywood Hills area.
Lastly, the Hurst Fire began on Tuesday night. It started in the San Fernando neighborhood of Sylmar and has destroyed over 500 acres so far.
Is There a Current Fire in Pacific Palisades?
A massive portion of the Palisades is currently in flames. Over 15,000 acres have so far been burned, causing thousands of people to flee their homes, vehicles, and property. Local and state authorities have been working round the clock to curtail the devastating flames and save as much property and lives as possible.
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In the Pacific Palisades, fires encouraged by high winds of speeds up to 100 mph have destroyed over 3000 acres of land. The smoke from the fire had traveled 100 miles off the Pacific coasts.
According to Christine Crowley, head of the Los Angeles City Fire Department, the disaster has stretched the capabilities of fire crews to their “maximum limits.” Buttressing this point is Glenn Corbett, professor of fire science at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.
“There’s not a fire department on the planet that could deal with this,” he told journalists. Analyzing the fires, Corbett explained that the usual behavior of fire is to burn upwards or vertically. But things are different in this case, he said. Climate change-empowered winds are “like a giant fan,” blowing the flames horizontally.
Did Pacific Palisades Residents Undergo a Fire Evacuation?
Over 30,000 residents of the Pacific Palisades have had to leave their homes as the Palisades Fire escalated. A huge area of the community has been reduced to ash. Fire officials have reported that the wildfires have leveled over 1000 buildings in the community.
Authorities have warned residents to be wary of not just the vicious flames but also the fumes. According to Brian Rice, President of the California Professional Firefighters Union, the area is a “toxic soup.” He is appealing to tourists and some curious residents to steer clear of the area.
“It’s not just the brush that’s burning, but homes are burning. Homes contain plastics that are built from petrochemical compounds. If you do not have to be in that area and breathe that environment in, don’t. It’s dangerous,” he warned.
“They’re picking up burning debris and embers and depositing them downwind, and that’s the recipe for what we’ve got now. There’s nothing the fire crews can physically do to stop this fire,” he further explained. He also stated that authorities will need a lot of help from nature to curtail the spread.
“All they can do is try to get ahead of it and hope there are enough natural fire breaks, in the form of rivers, open areas with little vegetation, that maybe can slow it down a little bit. It’s virtually uncontrollable, and they go out, typically, only when they run out of fuel,” he added.
Firefighters confronting the Palisades have complained of frustrating water shortages. “We are using maybe four times the normal amount of water because we are having to use so many hose lines,” said Erik Scott, Los Angeles Fire Captain.
What Caused the Pacific Palisades Fire?
Residents have been curious to know what started the Pacific Palisades Fire. According to experts, a number of factors are to blame. Authorities are blaming the weather, with its low water content, for the fires. Since the first day of October, Southern California has witnessed less than 10% of its average rainfall.
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Also, experts from the National Weather Service have pointed fingers at offshore winds, which encouraged the drought-like conditions. The service has also warned that about 19 million people are still at risk until the weather conditions change.
It has also warned residents to be on high alert till Friday, January 10. Thankfully, in the affected areas, only five deaths have been recorded in the disaster so far. Currently, many injuries have been recorded, with the casualties including four firemen.
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