As the fires continue to erupt in California, thousands of lives are at risk. The fires, beginning on January 7th, 2025, spread through the sun state and developed into around 31 wildfires. The largest two wildfires are still active, known as the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire.
Both the Palisades and Eaton fires began on January 7th, with others following. After about two weeks of the first outbreaks, the Palisades Fire, which began in the Pacific Palisades, destroyed over 6,000 structures and covered 23,700 acres. It was one of the first fires to start, yet it was only at 57% containment at the time. The Eaton Fire began North of Pasadena. It destroyed around 10,000 structures but was much smaller than The Palisades Fire at around 14,000 acres. The fire was much more contained, at 87%. These two fires were only the largest of the bunch, with many more following in their tracks.
The fires were fully contained on January 31st. California’s fire department responded to 337 wildland fires, 449 structure fires, and 6,259 other fires, as shown by fire.ca.gov’s statistics. Along with these fires, they also responded to about 41,533 medical incidents, among many other sections. In total, throughout the month of January, the California fire department responded to a total of 56,903 incident reports. They have worked tirelessly to protect and save the people of Los Angeles, yet the fight is still not over.
With the fires now contained, they fear more destruction will arise. A large storm was predicted to hit on the week of February 9th. Fox 11 stated, “The lack of rainfall leading up to the storm may lead to less severe impacts, mainly away from burn scars.” The storm may also cause more destruction, as it might cause flooding and debris to flow to different parts of the cities and block roads used for evacuation. With the loss of homes, the heavy rain and strong winds will be very dangerous for the people.
As the storms hit, many areas suffered flooding and debris damage. The rainfall fortunately missed the high-risk areas, which would have resulted in more lives being affected and at risk. An article in the New York Times based on the California fires by Jesus Jiménez, Orlando Mayorquín, and Vik Jolly mentions that when the major point of the storm hit California, flash flood warnings were sent to multiple areas affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires. These areas consisted of Malibu, Pacific Palisades, the Altadena area, and Los Angeles County. This affected a lot of people in the area, at around seven million. The fight against these fires is nearing its end, and the people of California will have to work together to combat the destruction brought about by the fires.
