At least ten people died in these violent fires, according to the authorities. Entire sections of the second largest city in the United States are devastated, charred: more than 10,000 buildings have been destroyed by the flames, according to Californian fire services. “It reminded me of a war scene, with bombing,” President Joe Biden said during a White House meeting.
Five active outbreaks
AFP journalists flew over the coast of Malibu and the upscale neighborhood of Pacific Palisades on Thursday: instead of the sumptuous villas of multimillionaires and celebrities with breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean, there are often only scrap metal skeletons left , filled with ashes. “It’s crazy. All these houses, disappeared…” breathes Albert Azouz, helicopter pilot.
The wind nevertheless weakened on Friday, which will help firefighters fight the flames, while five main outbreaks are still active.
Establishment of a curfew
“We are seeing a slight drop now (in the strength of the winds), but this will especially be the case in the afternoon,” meteorologist Mike Wofford told AFP. And tomorrow (Saturday), there won’t really be any wind until the evening.”
However, the conditions, with extreme drought and winds expected to strengthen later, remain worrying. On Thursday afternoon, a new fire broke out north of the main home in Pacific Palisades, near the wealthy Hidden Hills neighborhood, where star Kim Kardashian lives. It has since been largely brought under control.
Across the Californian megacity, depending on the orders received, evacuations number in the hundreds of thousands. Faced with increasing looting in disaster or evacuated areas, a curfew, in effect between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. in Pacific Palisades and Altadena, was decreed by local authorities on Friday. Soldiers were also deployed. “Let’s be clear: looting will not be tolerated,” insisted the Democratic governor of California, Gavin Newsom.
Before this decision, residents were already acting as vigilantes and patrolling to protect what remains of their neighborhoods. “I didn’t save this damn house for some idiot to come and steal from me. There is no way,” Nicholas Norman, who guards his home armed with a hunting rifle, told AFP in the middle of the ruins of Altadena.
‘We shouldn’t be overwhelmed when it comes to firefighters’
Among the affected residents, questions and criticisms emerge. If his mother’s house miraculously escaped the furious flames in Altadena, unlike neighboring homes, “California is a state that burns, we should not be overwhelmed when it comes to firefighters,” grumbles Kalen Astoor, assistant thirty-year-old lawyer. “That’s where we need to put money: (against) earthquakes and fires.”
These powerful fires, fanned by gusts that blew up to 160 km/h in the first days, sweeping embers for kilometers, could be the costliest on record: AccuWeather estimates the total damage and losses at between 135 and 150 billion dollars.
Californians are being urged by authorities to save water, as some reservoirs supplying fire hydrants have been emptied by the fight against flames. President-elect Donald Trump spread false information on his Truth Social network, claiming that California is running out of water because of Democratic environmental policies that would divert rainwater to protect a “useless fish.”
In fact, most of the water used by Los Angeles comes from the Colorado River, and is used primarily by the agricultural sector.
Wind intensity never seen in 15 years
The cinema industry, in its lair of Hollywood, with several film shoots and series stopped, or even sporting events, such as a postponed Lakers match, have not escaped the consequences of the fires.
The hot, dry Santa Ana winds currently blowing are a classic of California autumns and winters. But this time they reached an intensity not seen since 2011, according to meteorologists. A nightmare for firefighters: California is coming out of two very rainy years which gave rise to lush vegetation, now dried up by a glaring lack of rain for eight months.
Scientists regularly point out that climate change is increasing the frequency of extreme weather events.
