Still plagued by fires, Los Angeles worries about “critical” winds

Southern California is swept by new powerful winds on Monday, creating “critical” weather conditions around Los Angeles, still plagued by destructive fires that have killed at least 27 people.

Firefighters continue to make progress against the flames, which have destroyed nearly 16,000 hectares since January 7 and devastated certain neighborhoods and suburbs of the American megalopolis.

But the danger of a recovery is still not over, due to the return of violent winds.

Some gusts exceeded 140 km/h on Monday, a power comparable to that of a hurricane. Combined with the lack of rain which has dried out the region for eight months, they create conditions conducive to the spread of the fire.

We expect this to continue to create extremely critical fire weather conditions across the regionexplained to AFP Ariel Cohen, of the American meteorological services (NWS).

Any fires that form can grow explosively. This is therefore a particularly dangerous situation.he added.

Criticized for their management of the disaster, the authorities pre-deployed firefighters and trucks in risk areas.

I think we will be very, very well prepared for the worst possible scenario over the next couple of days, and I hope we don’t get to that point.

The largest fire, the Palisades Fire, was 59% contained as of Monday, and officials have reduced the extent of affected areas with an evacuation order.

The Eaton fire, which notably ravaged the town of Altadena, north of Los Angeles, was 87% contained. Los Angeles is still assessing the extent of the damage, which will disrupt the lives of thousands of people, well beyond just the victims of the fires.

Grieving, the city is also asking a lot of questions about its reconstruction and is seeing political disputes around fire management worsen.

Visit Donald Trump

Donald Trump is expected in California this weekend. A visit that will be closely scrutinized by residents, because the Republican billionaire has in the past threatened to cut federal aid helping California fight fires.

We watch fires that are still burning tragically for weeks without even a gesture of defenselaunched the tribune Monday, during his inauguration speech as the new president of the United States.

We cannot let this happen. Nobody is capable of doing anything. This will changehe added, criticizing the management of this Democratic state.

Mr. Trump’s pet peeve, the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, tried to calm things down on Monday, after two weeks of controversy.

I look forward to President Trump’s visit to Los Angeles and bringing the full weight of the federal government to bear to help our fellow Americans recover and rebuildhe wrote on social networks.

On Sunday, he denounced the disinformation around fires.

Mr. Trump notably wrongly accused him of having blocked excess rain and sleet from the north from California. To which the governor, to whom the press often attributes presidential ambitions, replied that there is no magic faucet in the north of the state to water the south.

In fact, Los Angeles draws most of its water through aqueducts and canals from entirely separate river basins further east. The city depends in particular on the health of the Colorado River.

Southern California hasn’t seen significant precipitation in about eight months. If the rain returns, authorities now fear it will cause mudslides, landslides and flash floods on soils weakened by recent fires.