A wildfire has engulfed Los Angeles City (L.A.) in California, USA. The fires are in L.A.’s Pacific Palisades, Eaton Aerospace, Sunset Boulevard, Kenith, and Hurst areas. It has burnt around 96,500 acres of combined areas from above localities so far, almost the size of central London UK and combined Manhattan and Brooklyn areas of New York. So far 5 people have died, but officials say the death toll is likely to be higher.  More than 9,000 structures have been damaged or destroyed and at least 1,30,000 residents have been evacuated. Another 2,00,000 people are under warning and can be evacuated if the fire continues to spread. Aerial & Land firefighting is being carried out continuously with thousands of firefighters working tirelessly to control the wildfires. The fire extinguishing teams used bulldozers to push dozens of luxury vehicles, like BMW, Tesla, Mercedes, etc. out of the way. Images & videos of the damage & the devastating aftermath of the wildfire have gone viral on social media. Netizens said that some areas 'look like a bomb was dropped in them.' According to the reports, the fire began as a forest fire on 7th January 2025 but spread wide and fast because of the powerful Santa Ana winds, which gusted with a speed of more than 112 kph. The L.A. government immediately released warnings and advisories to its residents on how to escape and protect themselves from the deadly fire. They also suggested citizens cover their faces & bodies to minimise smoke inhalation & ash residue collection on the body. Experts are calling it the worst fire disaster in the history of the USA. They said that L.A. is not out of danger yet and these fires have the potential to be the costliest wildfire disaster in American history. The wildfire is consuming some of the wealthiest neighbourhoods of the whole USA like Santa Monica and Malibu, where the minimum home value is around $2 million. The L.A. Public Works Dept. revealed that the affected localities' sewer, power and transportation systems “have all been significantly damaged." The L.A. Police arrested at least 20 people taking advantage of the disaster & looting people, shops, businesses, etc, or similar crimes. Southern California Gas Company has temporarily suspended its natural gas service to the affected and surrounding areas to avoid explosions & blasts. The electric power supply has also been shut down. Schools, colleges, and offices have been shut till further notice. As per the local preliminary financial assessment, the property damage is expected to be between $52-$57 billion and economic loss to be between $135-$150 billion. Many Hollywood celebrities and famous billionaires’ houses have also been destroyed and damaged. Paris Hilton, actor Billy Crystal, Oscar-winning songwriter Diane Warren, talk show host Ricki Lake, actor Cary Elwes, Eugene Levy, Adam Brody & Leighton Meester, and reality stars Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag have both lost their lavish & expensive houses in the fire. UK royal family’s Prince Harry & his wife Meghan Markle’s $29 million villa is also at risk of being burned down in the wildfire. The high-speed January winds of L.A. can spread the fire deeper into the already-affected areas and new localities, causing more destruction. Apart from physical damage, the wildfire is also likely to cause long-term health effects from the toxic smoke, causing health issues like asthma, skin infections, indirect skin burns, eye irritation, cough, throat sensitivity, etc. It is also likely to harm L.A.’s tourism industry significantly. Shockingly, BJP leader Rajiv Chandrashekhar mocked the disaster on X (Twitter). He wrote, “This is California - a USD 4.8 trillion economic powerhouse state, in the world's biggest economy USA ????????????????‍??.” He received a lot of backlash for it. On 9th January 2025, President Joe Biden announced that the US government would cover 100% cost of the initial disaster response to the wildfire including debris removal, first responder salaries, and temporary housing, etc. for the next 180 days. Biden also ordered the US Department of Defense to deploy firefighting resources, including helicopters and military personnel to help in suppressing the fire. He has also cancelled his planned visit to Italy to meet Pope Francis and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to focus on managing the wildfire crisis. ISH sympathises with L.A. hoping that the disastrous fire gets under control soon and causes no more damage.

Tags

• los angeles
• wildfire
• california
• usa
• fire

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