The death toll from the fires raging around Los Angeles has climbed to at least five deaths, and could get even worse, the county sheriff announced Wednesday.
“Earlier today we reported two deaths, and unfortunately the number of casualties increased to five as we moved further into this area,” Robert Luna told KNX News radio. “Remember that the situation is still very unstable and the fire is not at all under control. I really hope we don’t find any more, but I don’t think we will.”
Many more were injured in the raging fires that raged Wednesday in Los Angeles and forced tens of thousands of residents to flee under the threat of hurricane-force winds. Firefighters are battling three simultaneous fires in the Californian metropolitan area, notably in Pacific Palisades, an upscale neighborhood where Hollywood celebrities live.
This fire, which releases an impressive cloud of smoke, broke out late Tuesday morning and had already covered more than 2,000 hectares by Wednesday morning, destroying some 1,000 buildings in its path, according to the Los County fire chief. Angeles, Anthony Marrone.
At least one firefighter was also injured while fighting the flames, according to American media.
-City Mayor Karen Bass warned on X Wednesday that “the windstorm is expected to worsen throughout the morning.”
Warm Santa Ana winds, typical of the Californian winter, are expected to blow up to 100 mph in the region on Wednesday, according to the US Weather Service (NWS). Enough to spread the flames very quickly and pose a “mortal danger”.
Firefighters must fight on several fronts: Tuesday evening, a fire broke out near Pasadena, north of Los Angeles, and quickly ravaged more than 400 hectares, according to the Cal Fire agency. A third is burning around Santa Clarita, north of the megalopolis.
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