The gusts, which blew up to 160 km/h on Wednesday, sometimes carry embers for kilometers.
A first fire broke out Tuesday morning in the hills of the upscale Pacific Palisades neighborhood, which is home to celebrities and many multi-million dollar villas.
Since then, outbreaks have multiplied and often explode very quickly, within a few minutes.
After the San Fernando Valley and Altadena, a new fire broke out Wednesday evening in the Hollywood Hills, a few hundred meters from the famous Boulevard of the Stars.
The artery quickly filled with stressed motorists, stuck in traffic and trying to evacuate under the sound of horns, AFP journalists noted.
“We don’t have enough firefighters in Los Angeles County to deal with this situation“, lamented Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone.
Altadena, located north of Los Angeles, looks like a recently bombed area, with buildings still burning and homes reduced to ashes.
William Gonzales returned to see his home, evacuated the day before.
He told AFP “having lost almost everything“: “the flames have engulfed our dreams. There’s nothing left but ashes here“.
Jesus Hernandez assures that his house, like the many others devoured by the blaze, “no longer worth anything“.
“Seeing them go (in flames) in a few seconds is really sad“, he whispers.
Empty fire hydrants
Towering plumes of black smoke rise above the second largest city in the United States, with the acrid smell of burning in the air. The winds pose a “mortal danger“, according to the meteorological services.
-Residents were urged by officials to conserve water as three reservoirs supplying fire hydrants were emptied by battling blazes in Pacific Palisades.
In addition to the winds, meteorologist Daniel Swain points out in particular “the lack of rain and the abnormal heat and drought for six months” to explain these disasters.
President Joe Biden visited firefighters Wednesday at a fire station in Santa Monica. The day before, he had released federal aid to facilitate the fight against the flames.
On his Truth Social platform, his successor Donald Trump attacked California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, one of his pet peeves.
He referred to it as “responsible“of this”real disaster“claiming – falsely – that the state’s water shortage was due to its environmental policies, repeating his fanciful claims that rainwater was diverted to protect a “useless fish“.
Ceremony postponed
The fires caused the cancellation of many film premieres and closures of sites, such as that of the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park.
The Oscar nominations, which were due to take place on January 17, were pushed back to the 19th. The Critics Choice Awards ceremony which was to be held on Sunday was also postponed, and the nominations for the SAG Awards (SAG), the actors’ union awards Americans, were announced by simple press release.
Several Hollywood celebrities are among the tens of thousands of people ordered to evacuate.
Known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the saga “Star Wars“, Mark Hamill announced on Instagram that he had to leave his house in Malibu, a city popular with stars, on Tuesday.
Scientists regularly point out that climate change is increasing the frequency of extreme weather events. Warnings that now resonate in the flesh of Angelenos.
“It’s probably climate change that’s affecting everything. I’m sure that added to it all“, sighs Debbie Collins, in front of her store threatened by flames in Altadena. “The world is in a really bad place and we need to do more.“
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