The Hurst, Lidia and Woodley wildfires are also burning in Los Angeles County, officials said.
The number of deaths resulting from ongoing wildfires burning in Los Angeles County has reportedly increased to five, according to multiple local news outlets citing L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna. Tens of thousands have been forced to evacuate the region.
More than 1,000 structures have been destroyed by the fires, which have been fueled by strong Santa Ana winds, low humidity and ongoing drought conditions.
According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, there are five wildfires currently scorching Los Angeles County: the Palisades Fire, at more than 15,800 acres; the Eaton Fire, at 10,600 acres; the Hurst Fire, about 500 acres; the Lidia fire, which has reached 50 acres, and the Woodley Fire, at 30 acres. Officials said the Olivas Fire was burning in Ventura County. All of the fires were 0% contained.
Pasadena fire chief: ‘We’re going to get a handle on this fire’
Pasadena Fire Chief Chad Augustin said Wednesday afternoon he was optimistic that firefighters would soon get the upper hand on the Eaton Fire, which has so far burned over 10,600 acres in and around Altadena and Pasadena, destroying numerous homes and structures.
“Tonight we have very mild wind conditions,” Augustin said at a press conference, adding that the lull in the winds would help allow aircraft to get back in the sky.
He added that the arrival of additional fire crews, some from neighboring states, would help support exhausted local firefighters. “That’s what’s giving me confidence that we’re going to get a handle on this fire,” he said.
Still, Augustin acknowledged that the past 24 hours had been devastating for the community.
“I would be kidding all of you if I said we didn’t have our resources stretched thin yesterday,” he said, noting that with 70 mph wind gusts experienced in Pasadena overnight, planes used to dump water on the fires were forced to be grounded.
“I’ll be clear,” Augustin continued, “with those wind gusts, we were not stopping that fire last night. Those erratic wind gusts were throwing embers for multiple miles ahead of the fire and that’s really what caused the rapid spread of this fire.”
Eaton Fire death toll rises to 5
- The death toll from the Eaton Fire has risen to 5 people, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna confirmed to Eyewitness News Los Angeles. Earlier on Wednesday, officers had told reporters that two people had died.
- As of 3 p.m. PST, the Eaton Fire had burned 10,600 acres in Altadena, west of Los Angeles, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported. Several areas are under mandatory evacuation orders.
- Today at 5:50 AM GMT+7
- Kate Murphy
California power outages top 1.5 million
- Over 1.5 million utility customers in Southern California are without power as of 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time Wednesday, according to PowerOutage.us.
- The majority of the outages (942,218) are in Los Angeles County, where there are five raging wildfires. Ventura, San Bernardino, Orange, San Diego and Riverside counties also reported outages.
Various highways in SoCal are fully closed due to wildfires or wind-related incidents
- Various highways throughout Southern California are fully closed as of 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday, due to the ongoing wildfires and heavy winds. Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath posted a list of closures on X and advised people to avoid nonessential travel.
