The wildfires in Los Angeles, that have charred over 12,000 structures including people’s homes, continue to cause damage to life and property. Fuelled by the strong winds, the LA Wildfires have claimed lives of 24 people as of now and at least 16 people remain missing. Fires ripping through the Los Angeles area have killed at least 16 people, displaced thousands of others and destroyed more than 12,000 structures while burning through an area larger than the city of San Francisco.
Speaking of the death toll, 24 people have lost their lives till Sunday and at least 16 people are missing – the number is expected to rise. The blazes started last Tuesday, fuelled by fierce Santa Ana winds that forecasters expect to kick back up through at least midweek. Cal Fire reported the Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst fires had consumed about 160 square kilometres.
While a cause for the fires has yet to be determined, early estimates indicate they could be the nation’s costliest ever. Preliminary estimates by AccuWeather put the damage and economic losses at between USD 135 billion and USD 150 billion. Thousands remain evacuated or without power. The flames have threatened and burned through several highly populated neighbourhoods over the past week, including Pacific Palisades, Altadena and others.
About 150,000 people were under evacuation orders with more than 700 taking refuge in nine shelters, officials said. The California Department of Education released a statement Wednesday saying 335 schools from Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura, and San Diego counties were closed. It was unclear how many would be closed Monday. Containment of the Palisades Fire at 11 per cent and the Eaton Fire at 27 per cent on Sunday.
The Kenneth Fire, which broke out near West Hills in the San Fernando Valley, was 100 % contained as of Sunday morning, while the Hurst Fire was 89 % contained. Nearly 70,000 customers were without power across California as of Sunday morning, more than half of them in Los Angeles County, according to PowerOutage.us, which tracks outages nationwide. Sewer, water and power infrastructure across the region has been significantly damaged, officials said.
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