Closing summary
Hello, it’s almost 9pm in Los Angeles and we are closing our live blog for the evening.
For all our coverage of the wildfires, which California governor Gavin Newsom has said could be the “most devastating natural disaster in US history,” please see here.
For now, here is a quick summary of the most important developments from a disaster that has so far killed 24 people, displaced up to 100,000 and reduced entire neighbourhood to ash.
Firefighters are focusing on two of the worst fires in the county: the Palisades fire, which is 11% contained, and the Eaton Fire, which is 27% contained, according to Cal Fire, California’s department of forestry and fire prevention.
Firefighters have had some success over the weekend, with the Hurst fire now 89% contained having destroyed 799 acres, while a fourth fire, Kenneth, burned just over 1,000 acres before it was brought under control early on Sunday.
However, officials have warned that the Santa Ana winds could return, with Cal Fire, warning of “critical fire weather” through to Wednesday. In a post on BlueSky, CalFire said: “Life-threatening winds and dangerously low humidity are forecast for much of southern California – from Ventura to San Diego – creating a significant risk of rapid fire spread. The winds will cause increased fire activity.”
The death toll has risen to 24, according to the Los Angeles medical examiner, although officials acknowledge it is certain to rise. At least another 16 people are missing, according to Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna, who said search and rescue efforts were ongoing.
California governor Gavin Newsom said he will suspend a number of environmental laws to allow rebuilding across southern areas of the state destroyed by the wildfires. He said more than 50 teams of inspectors had been assigned to evaluate the damage, and hoped to complete the work in two weeks.
At least 20 arrests have been made for looting. Among them were two burglars who posed as firefighters when entering houses, according to the police.
Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California, has warned against scammers attempting to prey on victims amid the wildfires. Speaking at a press conference, Bonta said: “[In] emergencies like this, in addition to bringing out the best in so many, [it] also brings out bad actors who seek to use the trauma, the chaos of moments like this for their own gain.”
Schools, except some in mandatory evacuation zones, will reopen on Monday, after closing for all 429,000 students in the Los Angeles unified school district on Thursday and Friday, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho announced. Even still, tens of thousands of people forced from their homes by the enormous fires raking will not be able to return for at least four days, officials said on Sunday.
What started the fires?
Investigators are considering an array of possible ignition sources for the huge fires that have killed at least 24 people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in the Los Angeles area. The Associated Press reports:
In hilly, upscale Pacific Palisades, home to Hollywood stars like Jamie Lee Curtis and Billy Crystal who lost houses in the fire, officials have placed the origin of the wind-whipped blaze behind a home on Piedra Morada Drive, which sits above a densely wooded arroyo.
While lightning is the most common source of fires in the US, according to the National Fire Protection Association, investigators were able to rule that out quickly. There were no reports of lightning in the Palisades area or the terrain around the Eaton Fire, which started in east Los Angeles County and has also destroyed hundreds of homes.
The next two most common causes: fires intentionally set, and those sparked by utility lines.
John Lentini, owner of Scientific Fire Analysis in Florida, who has investigated large fires in California including the Oakland Hills Fire in 1991, said the size and scope of the blaze doesn’t change the approach to finding out what caused it.
“This was once a small fire,” Lentini said. “People will focus on where the fire started, determine the origin and look around the origin and determine the cause.”
So far there has been no official indication of arson in either blaze, and utility lines have not yet been identified as a cause either.
A treasured family ring passed down three generations has been found among the debris of a home burnt by the Palisades fire, firefighters in Orange City have said in a Facebook post.
“While battling the flames, Fire Engineer Garrett received a message about a family who had to evacuate without taking their belongings,” the department wrote. The crew meticulously sifted through the debris, discovered a safe, and successfully retrieved the ring.
“It was truly a miraculous moment for our family. We didn’t lose everything,” the family was quoted as saying.
“It was a glimmer of hope that came at the hands of an incredible group of men that I am eternally grateful for. It was a moment of joy and tears that we will never forget. Thank you.”
California governor says emergency teams ready amid dangerous weather warnings
California governor, Gavin Newsom, has pointed out in a post on X that the National Weather Service has issued “Particularly Dangerous Situation” warnings four times in the last three months.
The first preceded the Mountain Fire (Ventura) and destroyed 243 structures, he said.
The second preceded the Franklin Fire (Malibu) with 20 structures destroyed.
The third preceded the Palisades and Eaton Fires - with thousands of homes gone and blazes ongoing.
“The fourth,” he said, “starts tomorrow.”
“Emergency responders are ready tonight,” he added, “Pre-positioned firefighters and engines are spread around Southern California. Stay safe. Be ready to evacuate if you get the order.”
Updated
Cadaver dogs and online databases
As the death toll has risen to 24, officials say they expect that figure to increase.
Eight of the deaths were attributed to the Palisades Fire and 16 resulted from the Eaton Fire, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office said in a statement on Sunday evening.
But the expectation is the figure will rise as teams with cadaver dogs are conducting systematic grid searches in levelled neighbourhoods.
Authorities have established a centre where people can report the missing.
Officials were also building an online database to allow evacuated residents to see if their homes were damaged or destroyed.
Schools outside fire evacuation zones to reopen on Monday
As of Sunday, more than 100,000 people in Los Angeles county had been ordered to evacuate - down from a previous high of more than 150,000 - while another 87,000 faced evacuation warnings.
Even so, schools except some in mandatory evacuation zones will reopen on Monday, after closing for all 429,000 students in the Los Angeles Unified School District on Thursday and Friday, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho announced.
However, not all of the county’s school children will be so lucky, with some schools, such as Marquez school pictured below, gutted by the fires.
LA fires could test Getty Center’s claim of being safest place to store artwork
It houses some of the richest treasures of the art world, such as Vincent van Gogh’s Irises, a popular Rembrandt and a priceless collection of paintings, portraits and other works spanning more than seven centuries.
To protect them, the Getty Center in Los Angeles was built in 1997 as “a marvel of anti-fire engineering”, complete with fire-resistant stone and concrete, protected steel, and set in well-irrigated landscaping.
Now, with an evacuation order in place for the Brentwood area of the city in which the museum is housed, and as flames from the deadly Palisades wildfire rage nearby, the Getty’s claim of being the safest place for art during a fire could soon be put to the test.
Read our full report here:
The signboards that have appeared in the aftermath of the wildfires
Tacked up to tree trunks or pitched on the sidewalk, here is a look at the signs that have popped up since the fires began ripping through southern California.
After the Eaton fire, which is only 27% contained, this sign appeared in nearby Altadena. It reads: “We love you beautiful Altadena.”
As fears have grown about looting, some of those affected by the fires have taken to placing written warnings outside their homes, such as this one one, which reads: “Looters will be shot.”
“No Looters,” reads another.
Others affected by the Eaton fires are asking for donations, including cleaning supplies.
A smoky Hollywood sign.
And finally a makeshift sign that reads: “Make Altadena great again.”
Updated
Officials warn that strong Santa Ana winds could return
The National Weather Service warned that strong Santa Ana winds could soon return and issued red flag warnings for severe fire conditions through to Wednesday.
The winds have been largely blamed for turning the wildfires into infernos that leveled entire neighborhoods around the city where there has been no significant rainfall in over eight months.
What are the Santa Ana winds?
Find out more here:
The Oregon State Fire Marshal, Mariana Ruiz-Temple, flatly denied on Sunday that any of the 75 engines the state dispatched to Los Angeles to help fight the wildfires this week had been held up in Sacramento for emissions testing.
“There is misinformation spreading on social media and from some news outlets claiming our equipment had to pass emissions tests and our equipment and firefighters were turned away or delayed. TO BE CLEAR: THIS IS FALSE,” the Oregon fire official wrote on X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk.
On a website dedicated to knocking back viral misinformation about the fires, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office wrote that “out-of-state fire trucks take part in 15 minute safety & equipment inspection to ensure no issues with the vehicle.” When the rumor about emissions testing first surfaced in an unsourced post on X on Friday, the governor’s office noted, “the Oregon firefighting teams were already in the Los Angeles area battling the blazes.”
The false report had been amplified by the conservative activist Dinesh D’Souza in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that was viewed more than 1 million times.
When D’Souza’s shared the false report, he commented, of a false report from the Santa Monica Observer, a site known for posting invented stories, “You can’t make this up!”
The Santa Monica Observer was previously in the news for falsely reporting, in 2022, that David DePape, the man who broke into Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco home and attacked her husband Paul with a hammer, was a male prostitute hired by Paul Pelosi. That false report went viral after being amplified by Musk.
Later on Sunday, the Observer removed the false report from its website, with an editor’s note explaining that a local official had complained, “we can’t have people like you posting misinformation during an emergency.”
LA officials warn of price gouging as those displaced by fire seek housing
Los Angeles authorities are warning against scams and price gouging as thousands of displaced families seek new accommodations as a result of the wildfires that devastated whole neighborhoods and forced the evacuation of others.
In a press conference on Sunday, Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna warned against “anyone taking advantage of anyone who’s been victimized already, whether it is burglary looting, or any other crime, whether it’s a scam of some kind that you’re conjuring up to make money off of the poor people that have been involved in this”.
See the Guardian’s full report here:
Death toll from fires rises to 24, says coroner
The number of people confirmed dead in fires that are burning through the US city of Los Angeles rose to 24 on Sunday, authorities said.
The County of Los Angeles medical examiner published a list of fatalities without giving details of any identities. Eight of the dead were found in the Palisades Fire zone, and 16 in the Eaton Fire zone, the document said.
Water safety in the aftermath of the wildfires
Mark Pestrella, director of the LA County Public Works, issued a warning about water safety on Sunday, where he was speaking at a news conference about the Eaton fire.
LA had suffered “a major impact” to its water system, he said, with agencies collaborating to restore safe water supplies.
“Currently all five water agencies are under a direct no use order, which means that no one in the burned area should be using the water,” he said, “That includes bathing and drinking.”
“The water is contaminated at this point and not being treated to state standards.”
LA fire evacuees told no chance of return until at least Thursday
Tens of thousands of people forced from their homes by enormous fires raking Los Angeles will not be able to return for at least four days, officials said Sunday, as reported by Agence France-Presse.
Frustrated evacuees have formed lines at checkpoints hoping to get into evacuation zones created for the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire, whose massive blazes razed whole neighborhoods.
Many are desperate to get back to homes they had to flee with just a few moments’ notice to pick up medicines or clothes they did not have a chance to grab.
Others simply want to find out if their houses have survived.
But Los Angeles county fire chief Anthony Marrone said Sunday that gusting winds forecast this week mean the fire emergency is far from over.
“They can’t go home, simply because it’s not safe,” he told a press conference.
“It’s our collective priority... to be able to get residents back in their homes just as quickly as possible.
Newsom eases building restrictions to help rebuild
To help expedite the monumental rebuilding effort ahead, California governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on Sunday temporarily suspending environmental regulations for destroyed homes and businesses.
The California governor ordered the state’s tough environmental laws and permitting requirements to be suspended to help wildfire victims rebuild their homes and businesses, with costs so far placed at $135bn to $150bn over 10 years, according to AccuWeather.
Private forecaster AccuWeather has estimated the damage and economic loss at $135 billion to $150 billion.
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has offered to send help to California
Zelenskyy has said Ukraine is ready to assist those affected by the devastating wildfires in California, and 150 Ukrainian firefighters are ready to go.
“Today, I instructed Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs and our diplomats to prepare for the possible participation of our rescuers in combating the wildfires in California,” Zelenskky said in a post on X.
“The situation there is extremely difficult, and Ukrainians can help Americans save lives. This is currently being coordinated, and we have offered our assistance to the American side through the relevant channels. 150 of our firefighters are already prepared.”
Zelenskyy’s offer of assistance comes three days after Donald Trump Jr., son of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, responded to the Los Angeles wildfires by blaming Ukraine on social media.
“Oh look of course the LA fire department donated a bunch of their supplies to Ukraine,” Trump. Jr. said in a post on X on 8 January.
Updated
The fires that continue to rage
Firefighters have made progress on several fires in California, with the Kenneth fire, which burned just over 1,000 acres, bought under control early Sunday. The Hurst Fire, which has destroyed 799 acres, is 89% contained.
But two fires continue to rage. Cal Fire, California’s department of forestry and fire prevention, reports the Palisades fire is 11% contained, and has consumed almost 24,000 acres; while the Eaton fire is 27% contained and has burned more than 14,000 acres.
Here is a look at the Palisades fire in pictures.
The beachfront along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.
Police pass a commercial building destroyed by the Palisades Fire
A view of the Pacific Palisades Bowl Mobile Estates that was destroyed by the Palisades Fire
Updated
Despite fears that high winds would make airborne firefighting impossible on Sunday, aircraft did continue to drop fire retardant and water throughout the day. At a news conference on the Palisades fire, California National Guard Maj. Gen. Matt Beevers said that the guard had contributed 11 UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, carrying water buckets, and five C-130s equipped with Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems, which allow them to drop retardant from an altitude of about 150 feet.
Beevers said that another three C-130s will be deployed on Monday, and noted that “every MAFFS-equipped aircraft in the United States is currently in California supporting this emergency.”
Updated
Interim summary
Here’s a look at where things stand:
The California department of forestry and fire, or Cal Fire, is warning southern California over “critical fire weather” through to Wednesday. In a post on BlueSky, CalFire said: “Life-threatening winds and dangerously low humidity are forecast for much of southern California – from Ventura to San Diego – creating a significant risk of rapid fire spread. The winds will cause increased fire activity.”
Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California, has warned against scammers attempting to prey on victims amid the wildfires. Speaking at a press conference, Bonta said: “[In] emergencies like this, in addition to bringing out the best in so many, [it] also brings out bad actors who seek to use the trauma, the chaos of moments like this for their own gain.”
The Hurst fire could have been caused by the failure of electrical equipment belonging to power supplier Southern California Edison (SCE), the company said Sunday in a press release. SCE said it discovered a downed power line at a tower that “experienced a relay” at almost exactly the same time as the first report of the Hurst fire, which is 89% contained and has consumed 799 acres.
Cal Fire, California’s department of forestry and fire prevention, reports the Palisades fire is 11% contained, and has consumed almost 24,000 acres; the Eaton fire is 27% contained and has burned more than 14,000 acres; and the Hurst fire is 89% contained having destroyed 799 acres.
A fourth fire, Kenneth, burned just over 1,000 acres before it was brought under control early Sunday.
The unofficial death toll from the fires remains at least 16, although officials acknowledge it is certain to rise. At least another 16 people are missing, according to Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna, who said search and rescue efforts were ongoing.
Santa Ana winds are expected to pick up again over the next few days and bring more danger to Los Angeles county. Red flag warning will remain in place until at least Wednesday, the National Weather Service said.
California’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom said he will suspend a number of environmental laws to allow rebuilding across southern areas of the state destroyed by the wildfires. He said more than 50 teams of inspectors had been assigned to evaluate all damaged structures, and hoped to complete the work inside two weeks.
According to Cal Fire, more than 12,300 homes and businesses are known to have been destroyed, mostly in the Palisades and Eaton fires. The number is all but certain to rise.
Joe Biden will receive an updated briefing later on Sunday in a virtual meeting. The meeting will include vice-president Kamala Harris, the Fema administrator Deanne Criswell, and Randy Moore, chief of the agriculture department’s Forest Service.
At least 20 arrests have been made for looting. Among them were two burglars who posed as firefighters when entering houses, according to the police.
Updated
Cal Fire warns of 'critical fire weather' through Wednesday
The California department of forestry and fire, or Cal Fire, is warning southern California over “critical fire weather” through to Wednesday.
In a post on BlueSky, CalFire said:
Life-threatening winds and dangerously low humidity are forecast for much of southern California – from Ventura to San Diego – creating a significant risk of rapid fire spread. The winds will cause increased fire activity.
It went on to warn residents to avoid mowing or trimming dry grass on windy days, not to park vehicles on dry grass, and make sure campfires are completely.
Updated
Los Angeles police chief Jim McDonnell is now speaking at the conference and is echoing earlier warnings from other authorities over the rise in scams amid the wildfires.
McDonnell said:
Educate yourself before you give. Everybody wants to be helpful, wants to donate and wants to be part of the solution. But before you do that, do some homework. Get on the web and make sure the entity you’re given to is actually a legitimate one.
Updated
Speaking at the press conference, Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna said: “We are not going to de-escalate the number of people that we have out from a law enforcement perspective.”
He added:
“That will stay the same. A couple of other factors: I want to re-emphasize that we do have a curfew still in effect for the impacted areas that goes from 6pm till 6am… Simply stay out of the areas if you are not a first responder or have emergency business there.
I know there’s a lot of folks trying to get back to their houses. We are very empathetic and sensitive to those needs, but your safety comes first. A lot of these areas still look like they were hit by a bomb. There are live electrical wires, gas lines and other hazards. We want to make sure you’re safe, not to mention the health hazards that come with that information.”
Kristin Crowley, the fire chief of the Los Angeles fire department said: “With the impending winds, we got to pay really, really close attention to this.”
She added:
This wind event is approaching us, and it’s approaching us very, very quickly. I want to reassure you that your LAFD, all of our regional partners, every single agency that has come from up and down this state and outside the state, we are ready …
Now, what do we need from the community? … We need you to stay informed. Please stay informed. With trusted news and official updates, be prepared to evacuate. We keep going back to that, but with this next wind event, [we] got to stay informed follow all evacuation warnings and orders.
Updated
Local authorities are currently delivering an update on the Palisades fire.
The fire has destroyed 604 structures and damaged an additional 83 structures. It is 11% contained and has burned for 23,713 acres.
“We have airplanes, we have helicopters, even drones. We’re dropping retardants. We drop out everywhere we can again to secure that edge all around the fire,” CalFire operations chief Christian Litz said.
Updated
California attorney general warns against scams and 'bad actors' amid wildfires
Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California, has warned against scammers attempting to prey on victims amid the wildfires.
Speaking at a press conference, Bonta said:
“[In] emergencies like this, in addition to bringing out the best in so many, [it] also brings out bad actors who seek to use the trauma, the chaos of moments like this for their own gain. They see an opportunity, an opportunity to pray and take advantage. They take advantage of vulnerable and hurting families to make a quick buck. Unfortunately, we’ve seen that before, so it’s important for us to be prepared now.
We’ve seen businesses and landlords that use increased demand during emergencies to jack up the price of essential supplies and services of gas and water, batteries, first aid, supplies, construction materials and housing, including hotels and including short term rentals. It’s called price gouging. And during the state a state of emergency like there is currently in effect in Ventura county and Los Angeles county, it is illegal.”
The scams have spread across social media, including on BlueSky, according to Chad Loder, a community-based activist and anti-fascist researcher in LA. According to Loder, scammers have been creating fake Bluesky accounts using the profile photos of unsuspecting foreigners found online.
Updated
California’s governor Gavin Newsom has announced that he is deploying 1,000 more California national guard members to Los Angeles to fight the fires.
The latest deployment brings the total number service members mobilized in Los Angeles county to 2,500, as of Sunday afternoon.
Electrical fault might have caused Hurst fire, says power company
The Hurst fire could have been caused by the failure of electrical equipment belonging to power supplier Southern California Edison (SCE), the company said Sunday in a press release.
SCE said it discovered a downed power line at a tower that “experienced a relay” at almost exactly the same time as the first report of the Hurst fire, which is 89% contained and has consumed 799 acres.
Both the report and the relay issue occurred a few minutes after 10pm on 7 January, according to the statement.
“SCE does not know whether the damage observed occurred before or after the start of the fire,” the company said, adding that it had reported the incident to the Los Angeles fire department for investigation.
Updated
The Guardian’s video desk has produced this extraordinary side-by-side footage of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles showing the extent of the destruction caused by the Palisades wildfire.
The original video shows homes and businesses in the affluent Los Angeles neighborhood and was filmed by a couple who create travel content for social media.
Reporters then retraced their steps after the wildfire destroyed large swathes of the area, showing a devastating scene of homes reduced to rubble and burnt-out cars.
Updated
Interim summary
It’s just after 12.45pm in Los Angeles as three wildfires – Palisades, Eaton and Hurst – continue to burn. Here’s what we know so far:
Cal Fire, California’s department of forestry and fire prevention, reports the Palisades fire is 11% contained, and has consumed almost 24,000 acres; the Eaton fire is 27% contained and has burned more than 14,000 acres; and the Hurst fire is 89% contained having destroyed 799 acres.
A fourth fire, Kenneth, burned just over 1,000 acres before it was brought under control early Sunday, Cal Fire said.
The unofficial death toll from the fires remains at least 16, although officials acknowledge it is certain to rise. At least another 16 people are missing, according to Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna, who said search and rescue efforts were ongoing.
Santa Ana winds are expected to pick up again over the next few days and bring more danger to Los Angeles county. Red flag warning will remain in place until at least Wednesday, the National Weather Service said.
California’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom said he will suspend a number of environmental laws to allow rebuilding across southern areas of the state destroyed by the wildfires. He said more than 50 teams of inspectors had been assigned to evaluate all damaged structures, and hoped to complete the work inside two weeks.
Newsom told CNN on Sunday the fires would be the worst natural disaster in US history, “in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope”.
According to Cal Fire, more than 12,300 homes and businesses are known to have been destroyed, mostly in the Palisades and Eaton fires. The number is all but certain to rise.
Joe Biden will receive an updated briefing later on Sunday in a virtual meeting including vice-president Kamala Harris, the Fema administrator Deanne Criswell, and Randy Moore, chief of the agriculture department’s Forest Service.
At least 20 arrests have been made for looting. Among them were two burglars who posed as firefighters when entering houses, according to the police.
Almost 64,000 customers in California remained without power on Sunday afternoon, according to poweroutage.us.
Updated
Biden to receive updated briefing on wildfires
Joe Biden will meet virtually with “key officials” to discuss the California wildfires later on Sunday, CNN is reporting, citing a White House source.
Kamala Harris will join the call, the network said, along with other members of Biden’s inner circle including Deanne Criswell, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema); Alejandro Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary; and Randy Moore, chief of the agriculture department’s Forest Service.
The president will be briefed on “efforts to suppress the wildfires across Los Angeles and how the federal resources he has directed are supporting the state and local response”, the White House official said, according to CNN.
Updated
The Los Angeles wildfires could test the Getty Center’s claim of being the safest place to store artwork.
The Guardian’s Richard Luscombe reports:
It houses some of the richest treasures of the art world, such as Vincent van Gogh’s Irises, a popular Rembrandt and a priceless collection of paintings, portraits and other works spanning more than seven centuries.
To protect them, the Getty Center in Los Angeles was built in 1997 as “a marvel of anti-fire engineering”, complete with fire-resistant stone and concrete, protected steel, and set in well-irrigated landscaping.
Now, with an evacuation order in place for the Brentwood area of the city in which the museum is housed, and as flames from the deadly Palisades wildfire rage nearby, the Getty’s claim of being the safest place for art during a fire could soon be put to the test.
Outwardly, at least, there is little concern. “Our galleries are safe and protected,” Katherine Fleming, president and chief executive of the J Paul Getty Trust asserted in a statement on Saturday.
For the full story, click here:
Newsom signs executive order suspending landmark environmental laws to allow for rebuilding
Governor Gavin Newsom will suspend various landmark environmental laws to allow for rebuilding across southern California in areas that have been destroyed by the wildfires.
In an announcement on Sunday, Newsom said that as part of his executive order, he will waive the California Environmental Quality Act and the California Coastal Act.
Newsom said:
When the fires are extinguished, victims who have lost their homes and businesses must be able to rebuild quickly and without roadblocks. The executive order I signed today will help cut permitting delays, an important first step in allowing our communities to recover faster and stronger. I’ve also ordered our state agencies to identify additional ways to streamline the rebuilding and recovery process.”
In addition to the suspension of CEQA review and California Coastal Act, the executive order will direct state agencies to identify additional permitting requirements that can be safely be suspended or streamlined to accelerate the rebuilding process.
It will also extend protections against price gouging on building materials, storage services, construction and other essential goods and services to 7 January 2026 across Los Angeles county.
CEQA, signed into law by California’s then governor Ronald Reagan in 1970, requires state and local agencies to disclose the environmental impacts of proposed projects. Meanwhile, the California Coastal Act, approved in 1972, offers guidance on how coastal land across California is developed or protected from development.
Updated
As Los Angeles burns, politicians are beefing over the politics of fire.
The Guardian’s Edward Helmore reports:
Gavin Newsom, California’s Democratic governor, appeared briefly to put his long-running feud with Donald Trump to one side on Friday, when he invited the president-elect to Los Angeles to survey devastation from the wildfires and meet with first responders, firefighters and the “Americans” affected.
“In the spirit of this great country, we must not politicize human tragedy or spread disinformation from the sidelines,” Newsom wrote in a letter to Trump on Friday. “Hundreds of thousands of Americans – displaced from their homes and fearful for the future – deserve to see all of us working in their best interests to ensure a fast recovery and rebuild.”
The detente lasted less than 24 hours. By Saturday, Newsom, who is in contention to become the Democratic party leader in time for 2028, had returned to a more familiar, oppositional stance.
In an interview with Pod Save America, he rejected Trump’s claim that water is being withheld from southern California to save an endangered fish, the delta smelt, calling the president-elect’s messaging on the issue “delusional” and part of a “consistent mantra from Trump going back years and years, and it’s reinforced over and over within the right wing ... and it’s profoundly ignorant”.
For the full story, click here:
Updated
The animal resource centre Pasadena Humane has taken in and assisted dogs, horses, donkeys, goats, sheep and hundreds of other creatures that have been displaced by the wildfires in southern California:
At 4pm PT today, Eaton fire officials will host a community meeting to provide the current fire situation, address questions and discuss recovery, the Los Angeles county fire department said.
The meeting will be held in-person and streamed live on YouTube. Viewers are able to submit their questions at 2025.eaton@firenet.gov.
In an operational update earlier today, fire officials said that containment of the Eaton fire has risen to 11% and the fire remains burning at 14,117 acres.
Updated
Here are some images coming through the newswires from Los Angeles where multiple wildfires are still burning:
Updated
Speaking at the press conference, Anish Mahajan, chief deputy director of LA county public health, said that the “air quality is improving as we have seen the smoke lessen with the better containment of the fires at this time”.
He went on to add:
County residents should continue to monitor the air quality index, the AQI levels, wherever they are, but we are seeing improved AQI numbers, and so we encourage residents who are closest to the fire, who are smelling smoke or seeing it, who have the AQI levels in the unhealthy zones, to be using masks when they’re outside.”
Updated
In response to a question on whether there is concern about the animosity coming from Donald Trump towards California and its efforts to fight the wildfires, Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass said:
Actually, I’m not worried about that. I mean, I joined in the invitation to the incoming president to come to Los Angeles. I joined with the supervisor and the governor, spoke directly with the incoming administration yesterday. It was a fine call so I’m not concerned about that. There are also, as I mentioned before, a number of my former colleagues who are up for confirmation. I feel like I will have good relations.”
Updated
Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass said that she believes the city is prepared for the severe gusts of wind that are to be expected in the coming days.
In response to a question on whether the city is prepared in regards to fire hydrants and water pressure, Bass said that she will be recieiving reports in a few hours from other city departments and maintained confidence in the city’s preparedness.
More than 13,000 people have donated over $6m to the California Community Foundation to help wildfire relief efforts, Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass said.
“People are coming from everywhere to help us and make sure that we are ready for the days ahead. So to them, I want to say thank you,” Bass said.
The Los Angeles fire chief, Kristin Crowley, told the press conference that city officials were unified and focused on tackling the tragedy.
Last week, Crowley was vocal about how water supply issues and budget cuts “failed” her firefighters, allowing Donald Trump and other Republicans to seize on her comments as evidence that the Democratic Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass and other officials were guilty of mismanagement, before and during the fires.
She did not address the controversy directly but said her focus would be the forecast uptick in winds that threatens to expand the deadly Palisades fire:
I want to be very, very clear here. It’s very important that the community understands that these wind events are coming into Los Angeles. I want to reassure you that Mayor Bass, [police chief James] McDonnell, and I, are united and focused on exactly what we need to do to prepare the city with these next strong winds that are coming.
Kathryn Barger, chair of the LA county board of supervisors, said she had written to invite Trump to the city so he can see “the desperate needs, but also the incredible opportunity, hope and perseverance of our impacted neighbors”.
Updated
Los Angeles police chief Jim McDonnell said that a curfew is still being enforced in the Los Angeles city areas where mandatory evacuations are still in place.
“The order will remain in place tonight, curfew order from 6pm to 6am and unless you are a public safety personnel or some other disaster worker, you have no reason to be at these locations,” he said.
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Los Angeles sheriff Robert Luna also warned against those who are “thinking about scamming, using this incident to take advantage of residents that have already been victimized”.
Luna said that state and federal authorities are all “eager to prosecute anybody who is taking advantage of our residents during this very difficult time, whether it is a burglary or it is some kind of white collar crime in a scam or anything that you may be thinking about doing”.
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The Los Angeles sheriff Robert Luna added that the sheriff’s department currently has 16 missing persons reported.
Those include 12 in Eaton and four in Palisades.
Luna added that there are no juveniles that are missing within those numbers as of this moment.
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Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna is currently speaking about search and rescue efforts across the Eaton area.
“Yesterday, we started a search and rescue operation out in the Eaton area, where, in the first day of this operation, grid searching, we searched approximately 364 properties in the Altadena area. And unfortunately, during that search, we did locate three deceased,” Luna said.
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Los Angeles authorities are giving a live briefing on the wildfires across the county:
Here’s new aerial footage of the California wildfires spreading:
Current state of Los Angeles wildfires
This is the current state of the Los Angeles wildfires as of Sunday morning, according to CalFire:
Palisades: Burned 23,707 acres, 11% contained
Eaton: Burned 14,117 acres, 15% contained
Kenneth: Burned 1,052 acres, 100% contained
Hurst: Burned 799 acres, 76% contained
Summary of the day so far...
It has just gone past 7am in Los Angeles, where firefighters are continuing to battle three fires – Palisades, Eaton and Hurst - that are ravaging the city. Here is the latest on the LA fires:
At least 16 people have been killed so far in the California fires, with 11 attributed to the Eaton Fire and five to the Palisades, while 13 other residents remain missing.
Authorities issued new evacuation orders for eastern communities threatened by the Palisades fire late last night, including parts of the affluent Brentwood area.
More than 100,000 people are under evacuation orders. There are reports of California residents who have lost their homes struggling to find new places to live because some landlords and businesses are illegally raising prices to a very high level.
Tens of thousands of homes and businesses in Los Angeles are still without electricity.
At least 20 arrests have been made for looting. Among them were two looters who posed as firefighters when entering houses, according to the police.
Officials have imposed a mandatory curfew in evacuation zones as well as in the city of Santa Monica, which is next to Pacific Palisades.
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has doubled the deployment of the state’s national guard to Los Angeles amid the wildfires.
The cause of the fires, which started on Tuesday, has yet to be determined.
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Crews from California and nine other states are part of the ongoing response to the fires that includes 1,354 fire engines, 84 aircraft and more than 14,000 personnel, Michael Traum, of the California office of emergency services, has said.
As well as neighbouring countries Canada and Mexico, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon and Washington have all sent firefighters to Los Angeles as part of the emergency relief effort.
The National Weather Service has warned that strong Santa Ana winds could soon return. These winds have been largely blamed for turning wildfires into the infernos that have wreaked so much destruction across large swathes of California.
Here are some of the latest images being sent to us over the newswires from Los Angeles, where four fires continue to rage:
What do we know about the LA fires victims?
The Eaton fire, in the north of the city around Pasadena, covering 14,117 acres, has killed 11 people, including: Victor Shaw, 66, Anthony Mitchell, 67, who was an amputee, and his son Justin, who had cerebral palsy and was in his early 20s, Rodney Nickerson, 82, and Erliene Kelley, a retired pharmacy technician in Altadena who lived very close to Shaw and Nickerson. The Eaton Fire is the second largest and is estimated to be about 15% contained. You can read more about the people who have died since the wildfires started on Tuesday here.
The Palisades fire, which is roughly 11% contained and covers 23,654 acres, has killed five people, reportedly including Randall Miod, 55, a long-time Malibu resident who died in his home, according to his mother, Australian former child actor Rory Sykes, 32, who died after his mother was unable to evacuate him, and Annette Rossilli, 85, who reportedly refused to evacuate her Pacific Palisades home after she was told to after the start of the Palisades fire. 13 other people remain missing.
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As we have been reporting (see post at 09.37), US president-elect, Donald Trump, has criticised California governor Gavin Newsom’s forest management policies and falsely claimed the state’s fish conservation efforts are responsible for fire hydrants running dry in urban areas. He has called for the Democratic governor to resign.
In 2019, during his first term as president, Trump criticised Newsom’s forest management that he said had contributed to devastating fires. Last week, he criticised the state’s water management policies in social media posts the governor and other officials dismissed as false or misleading.
“One of the best and most beautiful parts of the United States of America is burning down to the ground,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. Posting on Truth Social six hours ago, he wrote:
The fires are still raging in LA. The incompetent pols have no idea how to put them out. Thousands of magnificent houses are gone, and many more will soon be lost. There is death all over the place. This is one of the worst catastrophes in the history of our Country. They just can’t put out the fires. What’s wrong with them?
Trump, who has dismissed the climate crisis, has promised to drill for more oil and cut back on renewable energy when he returns to the White House later this month.
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A video shows a fire tornado spotted in the Palisades blaze:
At least two looters were posed as firefighters as they entered homes, police say
As is noted in our news report on the California wildfires, at least 20 arrests have been made for looting. Officials have imposed a mandatory curfew in evacuation zones as well as in the city of Santa Monica, which is next to Pacific Palisades.
“Looting is an issue, the number of arrests is continuously growing,” Capt Mike Lorenz of the Los Angeles Police Department said yesterday.
“We even made arrests of two individuals that were actually posing as firefighters coming in and out of houses,” he added.
LA County Sheriff Roger Luna has said looting was “unacceptable” and hoped having soldiers – deployed in LA to crack down on looting in neighbourhoods emptied by wildfire evacuation orders – would “help send a stronger message”.
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Here is video of Los Angeles residents returning to their homes to assess the damaged left by the devastating fires which raged through multiple areas of the city:
About 35,000 homes and businesses without electricity in Los Angeles – data
34,646 homes and businesses in Los Angeles are now without electricity, according to Poweroutage.us, an outage monitor that tracks blackouts across the US.
Roughly 18,400 Southern California Edison customers remain without power, as well as about 16,100 Los Angeles Department of Water & Power customers, and about 100 with Pasadena Water and Power, according to the latest data.
Here is the latest data showing the number of people without power in some of the other areas of California:
San Bernardino: 8,333
Riverside: 7, 152
Santa Barbara: 2,081
In an update posted to X a few hours ago, the LA Department of Water & Power said since the fires started on Tuesday they have restored power to over 355,000 customers.
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It’s around 2am in Los Angeles, where firefighters are continuing to battle the four fires that are ravaging the city. Sky News gave this update on these fires about an hour ago:
Palisades: At least 23,654 acres, 11% contained
Eaton: At least 14,117 acres, 15% contained
Kenneth: At least 1,052 acres, 90% contained
Hurst: At least 799 acres, 76% contained
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Los Angeles county board of supervisors chair Kathryn Barger has invited US president-elect, Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated on 20 January, to visit the region and see the devastation caused by the fires first-hand. Barger said Trump’s visit would provide hope to the local community suffering from the wildfire’s damage.
“By accepting this invitation, Mr President-elect, you will join us in supporting our citizenry and thanking our heroic first responders, who have risked their own lives to save others,” Barger wrote in the letter, which has been posted on X.
“We would also ask you, as our president, to stand with the people of Los Angeles County as we set our course to rebuild. Your presence would be deeply felt and appreciated.”
I've sent a letter to President-Elect @realDonaldTrump inviting him to engage in wildfire recovery efforts and to visit the County to see the impact firsthand. The White House’s engagement allows for the rapid deployment of federal resources, including emergency personnel and… pic.twitter.com/X7Xs5Tat3o
— Supervisor Kathryn Barger (@kathrynbarger) January 11, 2025
Outgoing US President Joe Biden has already approved a disaster declaration for the southern California fires, committing the federal government to covering all of the fire management and debris removal costs for six months.
In a social media post on Wednesday, Trump said California governor Gavin Newsom, who is a Democrat, had “refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water” to put out the fires. Trump has called for the California governor to resign over the fires. The governor’s press office issued a statement in response, saying: “There is no such document as the water restoration declaration – that is pure fiction.”
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Price gouging preventing displaced Californians from finding new places to live
California attorney general Rob Bonta has warned that it is illegal to engage in price gouging, looting or scamming of any kind and those who do in response to the fires will be held accountable by the law.
“We’ve seen businesses and landlords … jack up the price,” he told journalists at a press conference yesterday. “It’s called price gouging. It is illegal. You cannot do it. It is a crime punishable by up to a year in jail and fines.”
Prices should only be increasing 10% or less from before the fire, Bonta was quoted as having said. He said that “this is California law and it’s in place to protect those suffering from a tragedy”.
The comments come amid reports of California residents who have lost their homes to the fire struggling to find new places to live due to price gouging – where companies or an individual excessively raise prices during emergencies.
“We put in an application at a house … that was listed at $17,000 a month, and they told us if we didn’t pay $30,000, we weren’t going to get it. They told me they have people ready to offer more and pay cash. It’s absolutely insane,” Maya Lieberman, a 50-year-old stylist, who is unable to find anywhere to live, told the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency.
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Here are some of the latest images being sent to us over the newswires from California:
A preliminary estimate by AccuWeather put the damage and economic losses so far of the LA fires – that have already destroyed at least 12,000 structures - at between $135bn (£111bn) and $150bn (£123bn).
LA fires death toll rises to 16 as new evacuation orders are issued
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Los Angeles wildfires that have destroyed 12,000 structures and killed 16 people.
Five of the deaths were attributed to the Palisades fire and 11 resulted from the Eaton fire, the coroner’s office said on Saturday evening.
The Los Angeles county sheriff, Robert Luna, said the death toll is expected to rise as authorities deploy search dogs to devastated areas. The sheriff also said 13 people are reported missing.
County supervisor Lindsey Horvath said the LA area “had another night of unimaginable terror and heartbreak, and even more Angelenos evacuated due to the north-east expansion of the Palisades fire”.
The CalFire operations chief, Christian Litz, said the main focus on Saturday would be the Palisades fire burning in the canyon area, not far from the UCLA campus and the J Paul Getty Museum. Over the past 24 hours, the Palisades fire spread over an additional 1,000 acres (400 hectares), consuming more homes.
A fierce battle against the flames was under way in Mandeville Canyon, home to Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities not far from the Pacific coast, where swooping helicopters dumped water as the blaze charged downhill.
The National Weather Service warned of worsening Santa Ana winds that it predicted would pick up on Saturday night into Sunday morning in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, and again on late Monday through Tuesday morning, bringing sustained winds of up to 30mph and wind gusts up to 70mph.
The fire also was threatening to jump over Interstate 405 and into densely populated areas in the Hollywood Hills and San Fernando Valley.
In other developments:
In response to criticism over water supply issues, the LA Department of Public Works released a statement “correcting misinformation” about the lack of water to fight the Palisades fire this week. The statement was released one day after the chief of the LA fire department, Kristin Crowley, told Fox LA that her firefighters had been hamstrung when hydrants ran dry in certain parts of the Palisades on Wednesday morning.
Malibu has lost one-third of the eastern edge of the city, mayor Doug Stewart said yesterday evening. He said that Malibu, a community of about 10,000 people on the western edge of Los Angeles, has suffered three fires in three months, with the Palisades fire, which threatens to spread west of interstate 405, being the worst.
Firefighters deployed from Mexico arrived in Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon. Canadian and Texan firefighters are also on their way to California.
Authorities issued new evacuation orders for eastern communities threatened by the Palisades fire late last night, including parts of the affluent Brentwood area.
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has doubled the deployment of the state’s national guard to Los Angeles amid the wildfires.
Newsom has also launched a website aimed at addressing misinformation about the Los Angeles area wildfires. CaliforniaFireFacts.com, a branch of Newsom’s own website, includes information about water availability, forest land management and LA’s fire department budget.
The Southern California Edison CEO, Steven Powell, has told reporters there are now about 50,000 customers without power, “down from over half a million just a couple days ago”. Powell said there was no evidence that any of Edison’s equipment caused the Hurst fire but that the investigation was continuing.
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