California engulfed in flames. Several fires broke out in Los Angeles, in a context of drought and when it could be the strongest windy episode in almost fifteen years.
Several spectacular and devastating fires broke out on Tuesday January 7, 2025 near Los Angeles in the United States. 1,600 hectares have so far been ravaged by the flames. 30,000 people are under evacuation orders. The authorities speak of a “mortal danger”, in particular due to a violent wind on the west coast of the country.
The fire broke out in the Pacific Palisades district, in which multi-million euro villas are under threat. “Many structures” are “already destroyed” according to Gavin Newsom, governor of California. Dozens of people have already fled the most dangerous areas on foot, specifies the American news agency Associated Press. “We were stuck for 20 minutes” in traffic, while “the children were being evacuated from school,” a resident told Agence-France-Presse (AFP).
“The strongest wind episode since 2011”
Some residents, less fortunate, found themselves stuck in traffic jams trying to leave threatened and disaster-stricken neighborhoods. “There was nowhere to go and people were abandoning their cars (…) Everyone was honking, there were flames everywhere around us, left, right (…) It was terrifying,” indicates Kelsey Trainor, comments relayed in the columns of the daily Le Parisien.
But then, how can we explain such a phenomenon and the proportions taken by the events? First, the force of the winds. They are expected to continue blowing up to 160 km/h in the region. “We expect this to be the strongest wind episode since 2011,” warns Daniel Swain, specialist in extreme events at UCLA University for Le Parisien.
Also, it could be the “driest start to winter ever recorded”, conditions favorable to significant combustion after two rainy years which allowed the vegetation to reform densely, before the drama of this start of winter. year.
1,400 firefighters mobilized and several people “victims of burns”
This Wednesday, January 8, several victims have already been recorded after the start of the fires, but no deaths, according to information given by the spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department, Erik Scott: “A 25-year-old female firefighter suffered a serious head injury. She received immediate treatment on scene and was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation,” he said. on X.
Also, “several burn victims were reported heading towards a nearby restaurant, Duke’s Malibu (…) Response teams redirected medical resources to the scene to conduct assessment and treatment “. In total, more than 1,400 firefighters are involved in the operations.
Celebrities like Star Wars actor Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker, James Woods of Once upon a time in America were evacuated from the upscale Pacific Palisades neighborhood. Unfortunately, the situation is not likely to improve, according to the words ofDavid Acuna, spokesperson for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire). Speaking to CNN, he indicated that there was no hope of “containing these fires, given the violent winds”. Tuesday evening, no less than 28,300 homes were without electricity due to the violent winds.