Imagine the hurricanes that wreaked havoc on St Pete this year, but they are on fire. It’s no exaggeration that this is literally what the residents of Los Angeles neighborhoods such as Pacific Palisades, Altadena, Malibu, and others in the foothills of the city went through this past January. With flames being fanned by winds that were comparable to Hurricane Milton. With residents having to evacuate at a few minutes notice, instead of with a hurricane where you get a few days. There are countless videos from influencers and reporters on the ground of nothing but flames in the air, and homes completely reduced to ashes.
This firestorm was one of the worst disasters in California’s history, with Palisades destroying 6,800 structures and Eaton destroying 10,041 structures. With both fires respectively exploding into areas larger than all of Disney world overnight. With palisades over 20,000 acres, and Eaton over 14,000 acres and the later Hughes fire exploding to 10,000 acres according to Cal Fire with 29 dead so far. What could have caused this though? Officials are speculating for Eaton that a transformer possibly malfunctioned and triggered the tiny sparks needed to light the bone dry and highly flammable brush. However, Palisades remains a mystery with officials coming up with two theories, a fire that was lit and contained on New Year’s Eve that was reignited, or a possible case of arson or a simple accident from a hiker.
However, the causes are overshadowed by the extraneous factors that allowed the fires to explode. There has been an unusual dry period in southern California as an atmospheric river that brings occasional rain in the winter seemingly staying north of LA and having that on top of a lack of rain from the previous summer. The foothills were practically a tinderbox. However the biggest problem was the Santa Ana Winds, which are caused by air from the hot deserts past the Sierra mountains rising and sinking down the foothills towards the Pacific Ocean when a low-pressure system passes by in the pacific, which occurred in early and mid-January. These winds get funneled through the valleys as they sink to the cooler Pacific Ocean and accelerate. Occasionally to levels seen in Hurricanes like Milton and Helene with gusts touching 100 mph. This and the tinderbox of a landscape allows a simple spark to explode into a firestorm in a matter of hours, especially since fires travel faster along hills rather than flat land.
These winds not only fan the flames to the point where houses are engulfed in minutes, they can also make the air quality dangerous for residents all over the city and even mess with the weather, as the videos of fire tornadoes can attest. With firefighters running out of water from hydrants and with the difficulty of having aircraft in the air to dump water because of the extreme winds.
Many in L.A know someone who was affected. Such as Alexandra Bugacov who sails at a yacht club only 3 miles south of palisades. She says that “it’s really sad and depressing” since a lot of her classmates and sailing teammates lost their homes, “one kid lost 5,000 dollars of sailing gear” as they almost had no time to pack up before they left.
“Many families are struggling and have nowhere to go” she added as hotels have quickly filled with shell shocked residents. Schools are still shut down and some such as Palisades high were burned down. However, the strength of a community comes together in a tragedy like this. LA residents opened countless markets and shelters for victims, with spaces also being provided for local businesses. With high profile events such as the Grammys showing support for victims. Although L.A is faced with the challenge of a long rebuild, and a complicated probe into what can be done to prevent this, residents remain optimistic that the city can bounce back. Although some are leaving at the face of more extreme disasters and with insurance companies pulling out. Additionally with the sentiment that the federal government seemingly putting conditions on aid due to political reasons and feelings that the state and local governments aren’t capable of handling increasing disasters.
