Thousands of people had to run for their lives because of the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles, which caused a lot of damage. The situation is especially bad for older people who were removed in their pyjamas and socks, and some of them were left without even the most basic things.
Strong winds have made the fires worse, making it hard for firemen to put out the fires and making escape zones a mess. People are being warned that the worst is yet to come for the fire, which has already burned over 3,000 acres.
At 10:30 a.m., the fire began near Piedra Morada Drive and quickly spread, burning at a scary rate of more than one football pitch per minute. There were so many strong winds that rescue planes had to land, so they couldn’t do anything to put out the fire.
Firefighters had to fight the fire from the ground, where the flames were unexpected and the fire was very hot. It looked a lot like other wildfires in California, like the Franklin Fire in December, which destroyed the same area.
Heavy traffic made the escape process even more dangerous, as many locals had to leave their cars on backed-up roads and walk away. Cars had to be moved out of the way so that emergency vehicles could get through.
It wasn’t just the Palisades that was hit by the disaster. An elderly care centre in the area had to be evacuated because of the Eaton Fire, which also threatened Altadena and Pasadena in Los Angeles County, which is next door.
Staff quickly got 95 patients out of The Terraces at Park Marino assisted living home. Many of them were in wheelchairs or on gurneys. Videos showed old people sitting in the parking lot of a 7-Eleven store. Some of them were not wearing shoes and were dressed in blankets and thin clothes.
The situation got worse as the officials worried that the fire was not out yet. Daniel Swain, a climate expert, said that dry weather and strong winds going together were a bad sign.
Governor Gavin Newsom agreed with these worries and said that firefighters had been put in high-risk places on purpose in case there were more fires.
Fire departments and local leaders worked hard to limit the damage and keep people safe. Together with the Los Angeles Fire Department, the city of Santa Monica sent out mutual help.
As the winds stayed a big threat overnight, Santa Monica officials stayed on high watch and kept a close eye on what was happening. Vice Mayor Steve Madison told people in the area to stay away from the Rose Bowl Stadium parking lots.
Los Angeles and eastern Ventura counties are under a “particularly dangerous situation” warning from the National Weather Service until Thursday. The message said there was a very high risk of fire because of the strong winds and low humidity.
Swain said that the risk of fire would stay high all week, with steadily drier growth making the risk of flames higher. “The vegetation will become progressively drier the longer the wind event goes on,” he noted.
On the front lines of the fighting, firemen were in grave danger. Without air help, firefighters had to use hoses and other hand tools to try to stop the fires from spreading too quickly.
Because of the winds, it was hard to tell where the flames would go, so firemen had to stay alert and adjust to the fire’s unpredictable moves.
Steve Guttenberg, an actor, was one of the people telling people to leave and telling them to take the fire seriously. His work, along with that of other workers, first responders, and people in the community, showed how important it is to work together during disasters.
People in Southern California were scared that the worst was yet to come as the Palisades and Eaton fires kept spreading.
Local governments and firefighters have worked very hard to put out the fires and keep people safe, but the region is expecting more problems in the days to come and doesn’t think things will get better any time soon.
