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Los Angeles braced for near “hurricane-like” winds Monday that forecasters said could fuel the devastating wildfires that have swept through southern California over the past week.
As firefighters struggled to contain it deadly flames that continued to lash the second-largest suburb in the United States, the National Weather Service issued a “red flag warning” amid severe conditions.
Winds of up to 75 kilometers per hour were expected to lash the region from Monday night into Wednesday morning, according to the NWS, combining with extremely dry conditions to create “significant fire weather”.
“The National Weather Service is predicting approaching hurricane force winds, and so we're making emergency preparations,” LA mayor Karen Bass said Monday. “My priority, and everyone's priority, is to do everything we can to protect life as these winds approach.”
Authorities since last Tuesday have battled the flames that have burned more than 40,000 hectares of land. California Governor Gavin Newsom warned that the fires could be a thing the worst disaster in US history as he clashed with president-elect Donald Trump over the country's response.
The cause of the fire has not been revealed, but it is expected to increase the number of cases in the coming weeks. Shares in utility group Edison International fell 11.9 percent on Monday after Bloomberg reported that it has been sued in a lawsuit alleging that a California utility owned by Edison was responsible for one of the fires. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The biggest outbreak, i Pacific Palisades The fire was only 14 percent contained by Monday morning local time, prompting fears that heavy rains in the coming days will set back progress in fighting the flames.
“Do not do anything that could cause a fire,” the NWS warned on Monday as it warned strong winds could create “exploding fire growth”.
The death toll reached 24 on Monday, officials said, and is expected to rise as authorities search the rubble for missing people.
Bass said firefighters from LA and the rest of the region are “on active duty and lifesaving tactics” in heavily damaged areas. About 5,000 firefighters were stationed in the Palisades area and another 3,000 on the Eaton fire near Altadena.
The disaster spilled over into the political arena, with Trump on Sunday attacking authorities for failing to stop the destruction. “Fires still burning in LA Politicians can't put them out,” he posted on his Social Truth network.
The incoming Republican president accused the governor of California, a Democrat, of destroying reservoirs to protect endangered fish species, and refusing to sign a “water restoration declaration”. Newsom's office said there was no such announcement.
“That misinformation and disinformation I don't think is helpful or helpful to any of us,” Newsom told NBC's. Meet the Press on Sunday, noting that he had invited the president-elect to visit the affected areas but had yet to receive a response. “In response to Donald Trump's insults, we will spend another month.”
Meanwhile, city officials have warned against price gougers who have inflated rental prices as thousands of people flee their homes.
LAist, a local news site, found a Zillow listing for a furnished home in Bel Air going for $29,500 a month — 86 percent higher than in September.
Illustration by Steven Bernard