Deadly California wildfires devastate Los Angeles metro as 50 MPH+ winds fuel flames
6 min read
A new California wildfire has erupted near Runyon Canyon Park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles. This comes as much of Southern California enters its third day of a critical fire weather threat. FOX Weather’s Robert Ray describes the current situation in Pacific Palisades as multiple wildfires continue to burn.
LOS ANGELES – The apocalyptic and deadly wildfires ravaging Southern California remain extremely volatile Thursday as a terrifying third day of a critical fire weather threat grips much of Los Angeles County.
The infernos’ full-blown assault from once-hurricane-force winds has sent more than 200,000 people under some sort of evacuation notice as the region’s relentless enemy continues to consume everything in its path.
WATCH: LOS ANGELES HOME COLLAPSES LIVE ON FOX WEATHER AS WILDFIRES RAGE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Multiple homes burned along a Malibu street as the Palisades Fire swept through several neighborhoods. (Video courtesy: Annestacia Komarovsk via Storyful)
More than 1,000 structures – many of them homes, businesses and schools in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood – have crumbled into ash in the most destructive fire the county has ever recorded, Los Angeles County officials said. At least five people have been killed, and the human cost of the disaster is likely to increase significantly in the days and weeks ahead.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said more than 7,500 firefighting and emergency personnel have been deployed to protect the state. President Joe Biden has also approved Newsom’s request for a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration to support ongoing response efforts to combat the relentless advance of five monstrous blazes – the Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, Lidia and Sunset fires – each fueled by the most ferocious Santa Ana winds in over 14 years.
“We are putting all available resources behind fighting these wildfires, including leveraging local and federal assets,” Newsome said. “California has thousands of boots on the ground working to combat these fires. The state is leaving no stone unturned to protect California communities.”
BEFORE AND AFTER IMAGES SHOW THE EXTENT OF WILDFIRE DAMAGE AROUND LOS ANGELES
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Firefighters continue battling Palisades fire as flames rage across Los Angeles, California, United States on January 09, 2025. (Photo by Official Flickr Account of CAL FIRE / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES – JANUARY 8: A house in on fire as residents try to escape the site in Pacific Palisades, California, Los Angeles, United States on January 8, 2025. A fast-moving wildfire has forced 30,000 people to evacuate, with officials warning that worsening winds could further escalate the blaze. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Image showing the remnants of a neighborhood north of Los Angeles
(Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies) -
Image showing the remnants of a neighborhood north of Los Angeles
(Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies) -
Image showing the remnants of a neighborhood north of Los Angeles
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First photo of the Sunrise Fire in the Hollywood Hills area
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Embers fly toward Komarovsk, sending her back into her vehicle.
(Annestacia Komarovsk via Storyful) -
One of the burning structures Komarovsk sees during her evacuation.
(Annestacia Komarovsk via Storyful) -
PACIFIC PALISADES, CA – JANUARY 8, 2025 – – A play area shoulders at the Palisades Elementary Charter School in Pacific Palisades on January 8, 2025. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times) -
PACIFIC PALISADES, CA – JANUARY 8, 2025 – – The fire ravaged Palisades Elementary Charter School in Pacific Palisades on January 8, 2025. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times) -
PACIFIC PALISADES, CA – JANUARY 8, 2025 – – The fire ravaged Palisades Elementary Charter School in Pacific Palisades on January 8, 2025. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times) -
PACIFIC PALISADES, CA – January 08: Peter Duke takes a picture of Palisades Charter Elementary School during the Palisades Fire on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, in Pacific Palisades, CA.
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A building burns during the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on January 8, 2025. Rampaging wildfires around Los Angeles have killed at least two people, officials said January 8 as terrifying blazes leveled whole streets, torching cars and houses in minutes. More than 1,000 buildings have burned in multiple wildfires that have erupted around America’s second biggest city, forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 8: A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire while it burns homes at Pacific Coast Highway amid a powerful windstorm on January 8, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. The fast-moving wildfire has grown to more than 2900-acres and is threatening homes in the coastal neighborhood amid intense Santa Ana Winds and dry conditions in Southern California.
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PACIFIC PALISADES, CA – January 08: Homes burn above Pacific Coast Highway near Will Rodgers State Beach during the Palisades Fire on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, in Pacific Palisades, CA.
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CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES – JANUARY 8: Pacific Palisades residents seen walking through a shopping plaza after escaping the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, California, Los Angeles, United States on January 8, 2025. A fast-moving wildfire has forced 30,000 people to evacuate, with officials warning that worsening winds could further escalate the blaze. (Photo by Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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MALIBU, CA – January 08: A Tesla is melted into the street above Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, CA on Wednesday, January 8, 2025. High winds escalated the spread of several blazes across Southern California. (Photo by David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)
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MALIBU, CA – January 08: Beachfront homes go up in flames along Pacific Coast Highway near Carbon Canyon in Malibu, CA on Wednesday, January 8, 2025. High winds escalated the spread of several blazes across Southern California. (Photo by David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images)
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The monstrous Palisades Fire ignited in the Santa Monica Mountains late Tuesday morning and exploded in a fury, consuming more than 17,200 acres as of Thursday morning, according to CAL FIRE.
“L.A. County and all 29 fire departments in our county are not prepared for this type of widespread disaster,” Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony C. Marrone told reporters at a news conference Wednesday. “There are not enough firefighters in L.A. County to address four separate fires of this magnitude.”
(FOX Weather)
More than 330,000 Californians were still in unsettling darkness on Thursday as a combination of wind, fire and power shutoffs swept through the region. Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said it had restored power to more than 150,000 of its 1.5 million electric customers since the start of the firestorm.
CALIFORNIA MAN SCORCHED BY FLAMES TRYING TO SAVE NEIGHBORHOOD BURNING IN PALISADES FIRE
(FOX Weather)
The Los Angeles Unified School District confirmed at least two elementary schools and a high school were either damaged or destroyed in the flames. All schools and offices will be closed on Thursday, and the district said it will continue assessing the situation over the next 24 hours and prepare for the possibility of online learning on Friday.
“The confluence of factors – wind, fire, and smoke – have created dangerous, complex situations that present unsafe conditions for our school communities,” district administrators said.
Gusty winds continue on Thursday but are significantly lower than in the past 48 hours. Strong winds return Friday. Long-duration Fire Weather Warnings are in effect for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Thursday, with Fire Weather Watches in effect Thursday night into Friday.
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2025-01-09 11:08:47
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