Death toll rises to 16 as firefighters work to prevent spread of California wildfires
Winds cause largest of the 6 simultaneous blazes to change directions on Saturday
Aircraft dropped water and fire retardant on steep hills, and ground firefighting efforts were stepped up in a bid to stem the eastward spread of the Palisades wildfire in Los Angeles on Saturday, amid new predictions of wind gusts that could hit 110 kilometres per hour.
Over the past 24 hours, the Palisades Fire spread over an additional 400 hectares and destroyed more homes, officials reported.
That fire is one of six simultaneous blazes that have ripped across Los Angeles County neighbourhoods since Tuesday, killing at least 16 people and damaging or destroying 12,000 structures.
The toll is expected to mount when firefighters are able to conduct house-to-house searches.
Earlier Saturday, Cal Fire official Todd Hopkins told reporters that the Palisades Fire, which has burned over 8,900 hectares, is 11 per cent contained.
Hopkins said that the blaze had spread into the Mandeville Canyon neighbourhood and threatened to jump into Brentwood, an upscale neighbourhood where celebrities live and play, and the San Fernando Valley. It also inched toward the north-south 405 freeway.
The U.S. National Weather Service warned of worsening Santa Ana winds in the Los Angeles and Ventura counties. It predicts winds will pick up into Sunday morning, and again on late Monday through Tuesday morning. The forecast called for sustained winds of about 48 km/h and gusts up to 113 km/h.
Evacuation orders throughout the Los Angeles area now cover 153,000 residents, putting 57,000 structures at risk. Another 166,000 residents have been warned to be prepared to evacuate, said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna.
Significant progress has been reported in returning electrical power back to Los Angeles neighbourhoods.
Steven Powell, CEO of Southern California Edison, told reporters there are now about 50,000 customers without power, "down from over half a million just a couple days ago."
Powell said there was no evidence that any of Edison's equipment caused the Hurst fire but that the investigation was continuing.
'Unimaginable terror and heartbreak'
As state and local officials grappled with the worst cluster of fires in Los Angeles history, U.S. President Joe Biden spoke by phone with some of them to get an update on their efforts. Biden also was briefed by his senior aides on federal resources that were being dispatched.
President Joe Biden has declared the fires a major disaster and said the U.S. government would reimburse 100 per cent of the recovery for the next six months. That declaration unlocked federal assistance for those affected by the wildfires, clearing the way for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide support.
FEMA officials, for example, were at the Pasadena Convention Center helping residents navigate aid applications.
FEMA spokesperson Michael Hart said that support can range from funding to help with home repairs to money to replace lost food or medication. The assistance can be provided within a matter of days, he said.
"We are looking to put initial funding in people's bank accounts to help them with those serious needs," Hart said.
Luna added that his agency has dispatched 40 search and rescue team workers to work jointly with other agencies, including the use of cadaver dogs to search for remains of victims and to help reunite families that have been separated.
"L.A. County had another night of unimaginable terror and heartbreak," said Los Angeles County supervisor Lindsey Horvath.
The fierce Santa Ana winds that fanned the infernos eased on Friday night. But the Palisades Fire on the city's western edge was heading in a new direction as winds came off the Pacific Ocean.
The fire, the most destructive in the history of Los Angeles, has razed whole neighbourhoods to the ground, leaving just the smouldering ruins of what had been people's homes and possessions.
Before the latest flare-up, firefighters had reported progress in subduing the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire in the foothills east of the metropolis after it burned out of control for days. By Saturday morning, the Eaton Fire was 15 per cent contained, state agency Cal Fire said.
Don Fregulia, an operations section chief with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said managing the Eaton Fire and its impact will be a "huge, Herculean task" that he said will take "many weeks of work."
The two big fires combined have consumed 14,100 hectares, or 141 square kilometres — nearly 2½ times the land area of Manhattan.
Seven neighbouring states, the U.S. federal government and Canada have rushed aid to California, bolstering aerial teams dropping water and fire retardant on the flaming hills and crews on the ground attacking fire lines with hand tools and hoses.
Officials have declared a public health emergency due to the thick, toxic smoke.
Homes reduced to ash
Pacific Palisades residents who ventured back to their devastated neighbourhoods on Friday were shocked to find brick chimneys looming over charred waste and burned-out vehicles as acrid smoke lingered in the air.
"This was a house that was loved," Kelly Foster, 44, said while combing through the rubble where her house once stood.
Foster's 16-year-old daughter, Ada, said she tried to get inside but "I just became sick. I just couldn't even ... Yeah, it's hard."
In Rick McGeagh's Palisades neighbourhood, only six of 60 homes survived, and all that remained standing at his ranch house was a statue of the Virgin Mary.
"Everything else is ash and rubble," said McGeagh, 61, a commercial real estate broker who, along with his wife, raised three children at their home.
On Friday morning, hundreds of people streamed into a parking lot near the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, Calif., for donated clothing, diapers and bottled water.
Denise Doss, 63, said she was anxious to return to her destroyed home in Altadena, Calif., to see if anything was salvageable, but officials stopped her due to safety concerns.
"At least to say goodbye until we can rebuild. I will let God lead me," Doss said.
Billions in losses
Many Altadena residents said they were worried government resources would go to wealthier areas and that insurers might short-change those who cannot afford to contest denials of fire claims.
Beyond those who lost their homes, tens of thousands remained without power, and millions of people were exposed to poorer air quality, as the fires lofted traces of metals, plastics and other synthetic materials.
Private forecaster AccuWeather estimated the damage and economic loss at $135 billion to $150 billion US, portending an arduous recovery and soaring homeowners' insurance costs.
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara called on insurers on Friday to suspend pending non-renewals and cancellations that homeowners received before the fires began and to extend the grace period for payments.
Law enforcement officials were warning residents to adhere to curfews, amid arrests with charges of burglary, looting and the possession of concealed firearms.
"You go out there and you violate this curfew, you are going to spend time in jail," Luna warned.
With files from The Associated Press
