January 12, 2025 - Los Angeles wildfires news

Our live coverage of the Los Angeles County wildfires has moved here.

Burned homes from the Eaton fire are seen from the top of Devonwood Road above the northwestern area of Altadena on January 12.

The total area burned by the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires is approximately 38,629 acres as of 2:30 a.m. ET, according to figures released by Cal Fire.

That roughly equates to 60 square miles.

The city of Paris is 40 square miles, meaning the fires have burned through an area of land bigger than the capital of France.

The Palisades Fire alone is approximately 37 square miles (23,713 acres) according to Cal Fire, so is nearing the size of Paris.

Utility companies are still working to restore power to tens of thousands of customers, with many areas experiencing deliberate electricity shutoffs for safety reasons.

As of Sunday evening, about 18,500 customers in the city of Los Angeles are still without power, according to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP).

Utility giant Southern California Edison (SCE) on Sunday said it had about 63,000 customers without power — an increase from the previous day, mostly due to the deliberate shutoffs “implemented in response to weather conditions.”

SCE and LAPWP have already restored power to hundreds of thousands of customers since the fires began last week, and have crews on the ground assessing fire-affected areas to prepare for restoration efforts.

Wind forecast: Southern California Edison warned that dangerous conditions — such as the powerful Santa Ana winds forecast to come early this week — could impact that progress, and even prompt more pre-emptive safety power shutoffs.

Water shortages: The power shutoffs are important to protect firefighters from falling power lines — but also posed a problem last week when crews faced water shortages from hydrants.

In Altadena, where the Eaton Fire broke out, issues with dry hydrants were traced back to a lack of electricity, said Bob Gomperz, a board member at a utility company that provides water to the western region of Altadena.

In foothill communities like Altadena, he said, water needs to be pumped into tanks at higher elevations so the water can flow downhill when needed relying on gravity. But after those tanks were drained by firefighters, they couldn’t be refilled - the power shutoffs meant they couldn’t pump water to where it was needed.

President Joe Biden also pointed to the same issue last week, saying fire officials brought generators into those areas to facilitate water pumping.

Los Angeles County Fire Department Section Chief Ken Haskett urged “patience” and “grace” when asked when people should expect to return home to assess what remains from the wreckage. The damage inspection is far from over, he told CNN.

“We estimate that well over 5,000 homes have been destroyed just in the Palisades,” Haskett said. “It’s devastating.”

“Infrastructure is destroyed. We are in a disaster,” he said.

Haskett says that the city and state will hopefully “get some reform” that will make buildings stronger and more resilient to such disasters.

“I ask for people’s grace, please, and patience – we’re doing this as quick as possible”

The Eaton Fire has left countless families displaced, each with their own story to tell.

For residents like Derek Russell Jr., the pain is compounded, CNN affiliate KABC reported. Just a month after burying his father, Derek Russell Sr., on December 6, Russell Jr. faced another heartbreaking blow when their Altadena home was consumed by flames on Tuesday.

“I didn’t even go through his stuff yet because I wasn’t ready. I was just trying to learn how to grieve for myself for that,” he told the outlet, reflecting on the weight of his loss.

“This means everything. This is his legacy,” Russell Jr. told KABC, clutching his father’s American flag, the only remnant of him.

Jay Lund speaks with CNN.

Building codes and land use planning have been “extraordinarily useful” for minimizing damage and loss of life from natural disasters like earthquakes across California, Jay Lund, a professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at University of California, Davis, told CNN.

The same could be done for wildfires, but fire codes for many buildings in Southern California are outdated and were likely implemented around 2007, the most recent 2010, Lund said.

Los Angeles’ unique typography of slopes and hills means that storing water locally for wildfire mitigation will prove to be challenging as houses are usually elevated, the professor added.

“There are quite a few communities in southern California where before you can build a development, you have to basically build the structures so that a fire can come through and not kill people,” he said.

A continued and persistent Santa Ana Wind event is ongoing across Southern California, where red flag warnings are in effect through Wednesday including the Palisades, Hurst and Eaton Fires.

On Monday: Winds are expected to slightly increase through the day and could gust between 45-55 mph. The possible gusts have put nearly eight million people under critical fire weather, per the Storm Prediction Center.

On Tuesday: Winds are expected to peak from the morning through to Wednesday at noon, where the National Weather Service has issued “Particularly Dangerous Situation” red flag warnings for parts of Ventura and Los Angeles counties. These warnings include the Hurst Fire and are nearby but not including the Palisades and Eaton Fires. Although not as severe as last week, winds could still gust between 45-70 mph.

What does that mean for the fires? These gusty winds will combine with very dry air and ongoing drought to exacerbate conditions for firefighters desperately battling to increase containment. There is a chance of “extremely critical” fire weather, the highest level, to be issued by the prediction center for parts of Ventura County on Tuesday.

These locations fall into the “Particularly Dangerous Situation” red flag warnings:

Western San Gabriel Mountains along the I-5 Corridor, Santa Susana Mountains, southern Ventura County Mountains, Ventura Valleys (mainly near Simi, Moorpark, South Mountain and Piru to Santa Paula), Northern San Fernando Valley along Highways 118 and 210 from Porter Ranch to San Fernando, western Santa Monica Mountains and the Ventura County Coastal Plain (mainly hills above Camarillo/Oxnard westward to Ventura).

Kim Kardashian attends an event in New York on September 9, 2024.

Kim Kardashian has called for higher pay for incarcerated firefighters battling the blazes in Los Angeles County, according to multiple US media reports.

In several posts on her Instagram stories, Kardashian thanked the LA Fire Department and the state’s Cal Fire agency for “using every ounce of their strength to save our community.”

Some context: The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told CNN that, as of Friday, nearly 1,000 inmates have been working to stop the fires.

Depending on skill, these inmates earn between $5.80 and $10.24 per day in an emergency. Cal Fire also pays the crew members an additional $1 per hour. They work a 24-hour shift, and the least skilled crew member earns at least $26.90 per day.

Royal Ramey, who worked as a firefighter while incarcerated and was pardoned by Newsom in 2022, told CNN last week the inmates perform the same work as regular firefighters.

“We’re out there. We’re in the front lines. We’re utilizing tools. We’re going out and we’re out there cutting line and doing our thing,” he said.

Beyoncé attends a political event, in Houston, Texas on October 25.

Beyoncé’s BeyGOOD Foundation has pledged $2.5 million to support wildfire relief efforts in Southern California, according to a social media post. The contribution to the newly established LA Fire Relief Fund is earmarked to assist families in the Altadena and Pasadena areas, which have been severely impacted by the wildfires.

The donation, according to the post, aims to address the immediate needs of those impacted, extending support not only to families but also to churches and community centers in other affected regions. The initiative, the foundation says, underscores its commitment to addressing immediate community needs.

Firefighters made good progress on Sunday, with milder winds allowing them to fully contain some smaller blazes such as the Lidia, Kenneth and Sunset Fires.

But winds are picking up again Sunday night — and expected to stay strong over the next few days, posing a challenge as fire crews battle the ongoing Palisades and Eaton Fires.

Here’s where the fires stand:

The toll: At least 24 people have died due to the fires. LA County Sheriff Robert G. Luna said his office has received “dozens and dozens” of missing person reports.

More than 12,000 structures have been destroyed by the Eaton and Palisades Fires alone, making them likely the second and fourth most destructive fires in California’s history respectively, according to Cal Fire.

The forecast: Stronger winds are expected to resurge Sunday night heading into Monday, bringing “critical fire weather conditions” through mid-week, according to the National Weather Service. These gusts could reach up to 60 miles per hour, in areas already impacted by severe drought.

Much of Southern California, stretching from Ventura County to San Diego, are now under red flag warnings, which signify high fire danger.

Firefighting efforts: On Sunday, there were more than 14,000 emergency personnel battling the fires on the ground and in the air, according to Cal Fire. States near California, as well as countries including Mexico and Canada, have also sent help. The LAFD sought to reassure citizens that it is ready to tackle the challenges ahead.

The possible causes: Fire agencies are investigating whether Edison electrical equipment contributed to the Hurst Fire. The fire was reported at around 10:10 p.m. and a circuit experienced a relay a minute later, according to Edison International.

Evacuations: About 105,000 residents are still under mandatory evacuation orders. If weather and fire conditions permit, authorities will begin trying to get people from evacuation zones back to their communities starting Thursday, the Los Angeles County Fire Chief said.