“The winds were very calm this morning, so we believe we can actually make some progress and turn the corner and start containing the fire,” Cal Fire Battalion Chief Brent Pascua said. today’s show on Thursday.
So far, the disaster response has been marred by disinformation and controversy. After some fire hydrants ran dry, President-elect Donald Trump baselessly accused California Governor Gavin Newsom of mismanaging the state’s water supply to save endangered fish species.
City crews have now been able to reach three water tanks located in the hills near the Palisades Fire to increase pressure. This allows tanks to be refilled more quickly and hydrants to continue to be supplied, Stewart said. Each tank can hold 1 million gallons. “We have a full-flowing fire hydrant,” she says.
More firefighters are beginning to arrive from Utah, Oregon, Arizona, Washington and New Mexico. Stewart said dozens of task forces are heading out, each equipped with five fire engines and a command vehicle.
The aircraft resumed flying on Wednesday. Twelve helicopters fill giant buckets hanging from cables and siphon seawater through snorkels. Six planes are also fighting the fire, including two “Super Scoop” planes skimming the surface of the Pacific Ocean to scoop up water. Helicopters and scoop planes spray water on the fire scene, allowing firefighters to approach and extinguish the fire.
Meanwhile, other planes drop flame retardants ahead of the inferno, covering potential fuel with a layer of non-flammable chemicals to slow its progress. The C-130 cargo plane that Cal Fire acquired from the Coast Guard and refurbished this summer can dump 4,000 gallons of retardant. This gives firefighters time to dig firebreaks into bare ground and clear them with bulldozers.
The Palisades Fire is confined to the south by the ocean, so response forces will attempt to prevent the fire from spreading to the east or west. “The real spread will be on the sides,” Pimlott said.
A red flag warning for increased fire danger will remain in place until Friday, with humidity ranging from just 8 to 12 percent. California has experienced an unusually dry winter, with 40% of the state in drought conditions.
“Fuel remains extremely depleted,” Cal Fire’s James Magana said in a Thursday morning briefing. “We expect to see significant spread rates, particularly on ridge tops and along windward drainage channels.”
Wind direction is expected to reverse on Saturday. If firefighters are not prepared, the fire’s origin could lead the way north.
Even if a fire can be contained within a firebreak or natural barrier, that doesn’t mean the job is over. Firefighters must extinguish a small fire on the property.
“This is an important step because it clears out these hot spots and anything that could flare up again if the winds pick up again,” Upton said.
The city will now have to remove debris, restore public facilities and analyze the damage to the environment before allowing people to return. The trees and vegetation that support the soil in the valley have been depleted, and landslides could become a threat if it rains again.
Los Angeles will face the prospect of rebuilding a destroyed community. Max Moritz, a wildfire expert with the University of California Cooperative Extension, said this is an opportunity to reduce vulnerability to the next fire.
Although homes are often required to be constructed with fire-resistant materials, California law is silent on how homes should be located. Techniques such as crowding homes together instead of scattering them among trees will make it easier to protect against fires and make evacuations easier, he said.
“This is part of the hope that we can do this better, smarter and safer,” Moritz said.
Updated January 1, 2024 1:10 GMT: Updated number of destroyed structures.
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