The Greater Los Angeles area fires continue to burn, though firefighters are making progress at containing the blazes. Most of the smaller ones are fully controlled or extinguished, but the Palisades and Eaton Fires continue to jeopardize the region.
The total number of deaths in the Los Angeles area fires is 25. This includes eight deaths linked to the Palisades fire and 17 deaths associated with the Eaton fire. The Eaton fire has now become the most lethal and destructive wildfire in the history of southern California. Many are still missing, and there are still power outages.
Officials said of the 13 still listed as missing, two bodies had been recovered but not yet positively identified.More than 55,000 customers were without power on Wednesday in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, according to PowerOutage.us.
Palisades Fire
The Palisades Fire in Los Angeles is burning 23,713 acres, which is 19% contained. The fire continues to pose a significant threat, with firefighters working aggressively to build and strengthen containment lines.
So far, 1280 structures have been destroyed, and 2042 have been damaged. In addition to the eight fatalities, three civilian injuries have been reported.
Mandatory evacuation orders remain in effect for the affected areas as red flag warnings remain in place through Wednesday afternoon, as wind gusts have the potential to hit from 45 to 70 mph.
Los Angeles Fire Department Decided Not to Deploy 1,000 available Firefighters Despite Warnings
As I noted in my previous coverage, the National Weather Service warned about the high winds and dangerous fire conditions ahead of the Palisades Fire.
Los Angeles fire bosses deployed just a fraction of its firefighters and trucks to the deadly Palisades Fire until it was already out of control — sending just five of the 40 available fire engines and holding back 1,000 firefighters, according to a damning new report.The critical decisions — blasted by experts and ex-fire chiefs as a spate of “missteps” — were made even as extreme warnings were coming in about life-threatening winds that turned the blaze into the most destructive in Los Angeles history.“You would have had a better chance to get a better result if you deployed those engines,” former LAFD Battalion Chief Rick Crawford told the Los Angeles Times.“You give yourself the best chance to minimize how big the fire could get. … If you do that, you have the ability to say, ‘I threw everything at it at the outset.’”
If the initial fire response is evaluated, the reasoning for this decision must come to light. Personally, I find it fascinating that the Pacific Palisades area voted for real estate magnate Rick Caruso to be mayor, as opposed to the winner Karen Bass, who was enjoying cocktails in Ghana as the city was incinerated.
The Community Note on this post is key to help understand the political complexities of this region.
Additionally, homeless camps were apparently allowed to proliferate at the expense of the fire budget.
Los Angeles’ budget is in the spotlight as multiple wildfires rage around the city amid revelations that Mayor Karen Bass slashed the fire department’s budget last year while prioritizing spending on the city’s homeless population.For the 2023-2024 fiscal year, Los Angeles budgeted $837 million for the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), which was roughly 65% the size of the homeless budget of $1.3 billion.
Eaton Fire
The Eaton fire near Altadena and Pasadena in Los Angeles County has burned 14,117 acres and is currently 45% contained. The good news is that firefighters are making steady progress in containment efforts, focusing on mop-up operations and reinforcing containment lines.
The fire has destroyed 4,627 structures and damaged 486 others. Tragically, 17 civilian fatalities have been confirmed.
California Pushes Back Tax Deadline for L.A. County Residents
How big a disaster are the mega-fires? The fact that the state is willing to push back tax collection offers a telling clue.
Taxpayers in L.A. County will have their date to file California tax returns on their 2024 income postponed to Oct. 15. They will also have until that date to make any tax payments that were due on Jan. 7 through Oct. 15….The postponement applies to:
- People whose tax returns and payments are normally due on April 15.
- Quarterly tax payments that are normally due on Jan. 15, April 15, June 15 and Sept. 15.
- Businesses whose corporate or pass-through entity tax returns are usually due March 15 and April 15.
- Pass-through entity elective tax payments usually due on March 15 and June 15.
- Tax-exempt organization returns usually due May 15.
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