California has been ravaged by major fires in recent hours. Several tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes in the face of the flames which surprised many people by their speed.
Flames ravage California. Since Tuesday, major fires have affected the surroundings of Los Angeles. According to the latest firefighters’ count, at least 9,000 hectares have burned, causing the death of at least two people.
Several tens of thousands of people are forced to leave their homes, according to local authorities. On BFMTV, Hatem Dhiab, who has lived in Venice Beach for more than 30 years, testifies to “the catastrophe” which is unfolding on the outskirts of Los Angeles. “It’s incredible what’s happening, there are thousands of people evacuated. There is smoke everywhere, there are five or six fires in different places in the city. There are friends who have lost their homes , it’s a war zone,” he says from California.
“I am shocked, speechless”
Many locals were surprised by the speed of the fire, which can be explained by the strong winds that have been blowing in recent hours. “I have never seen winds like that in more than 30 years. We have had winds of more than 100 km/h. Now, they are decreasing a little, but it happened so quickly,” continues Hatem Dhiab.
At the Los Angeles Times, other residents tell of “hell”. Charles, a storm chaser for nearly 16 years, said he has never experienced a similar disaster.
“It was noisy. We could hear so many explosions in the neighborhood, propane tanks exploding. It was just crazy,” he told the American newspaper.
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He and his friend finally abandoned their house, after battling the flames themselves, including with a garden hose. “We have to get out of here! We tried, sorry my friend. It’s over. Oh my god!”, he shares in a video shared on X as he leaves the premises.
The authorities praised the fight of the firefighters and the people mobilized on the fire front. “We saw that the fire was coming down the mountain and that it was moving very quickly. So we started to evacuate everyone. I ran up to the third floor to carry the people down. We had to carry them gently , because we have a lot of people in wheelchairs here,” said Zion Brown, a caregiver at ABC7.
1,000 buildings were destroyed, said Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone. A landscape of destruction noted by Kimberly Devane, owner of a building near Santa Monica. “It’s a war zone here right now. I’m shocked, speechless. I’m sad for our community. All the waterfront villas that cost tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars are destroyed, wiped out the card,” she explains, still to ABC7.
A local basketball team also told the Los Angeles Times about their “extreme” experience. As his team was about to practice, Palisades High School boys basketball coach Jeff Bryant recounted his escape from the gym. “We saw a fire above our parking lot. The wind was blowing hard. I was with my two-year-old. I ran straight to the car and hit the road,” he recalls. “We got out just in time,” he explains, relieved, even though the facilities could have suffered significant damage.
According to the latest count from the Los Angeles firefighters, nearly 40,000 people have received an evacuation order.
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