After spending a weekend containing the explosive growth of a blaze that destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people in the Los Angeles area, firefighters got a respite with calmer weather but a cautious eye on forecasts for more winds.
If that should happen, homes and valleys that have already burned could ignite anew, sending embers miles downwind into unburned regions. New fires can add to the confusion.
The death toll rose late Sunday with an update from the Los Angeles County medical examiner. At least 16 people were missing, authorities said, with the number likely to rise.
However, a relatively quiet Sunday allowed some people to return to previously evacuated areas.
The National Weather Service issued red flag warnings for severe fire conditions through Wednesday, with sustained 50 mph (80 kph) winds and 70 mph (113 kph) gusts in the mountains. The most dangerous day will be Tuesday, fire behavior analyst Dennis Burns warned at a community meeting Sunday night.
“It’s going to kind of ebb and flow over the next couple of days,” Burns said. “Tomorrow night, he’ll really step up.”
Spotting — new fires caused by blowing embers — 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) or more downwind of areas that have already burned, Burns said.
Despite their recent losses, stress and uncertainty, the crowd at the Pasadena City College gym was largely respectful, in contrast to the harsh criticism elsewhere for the Los Angeles and California leaders. Experts, police, firefighters and community leaders each spoke to thunderous applause.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony C. Marron said 70 additional water trucks have arrived to help firefighters battle the flames spread by the renewed storm. “We’re ready for the next wind event,” Marron said.
Officials said the fire extinguishers dropped by the aircraft would act as a barrier along the hills.
Fierce Santa Ana winds are largely blamed for turning last week’s wildfires into an inferno that leveled entire neighborhoods around a city that has seen no significant rain in more than eight months.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said 12 people were missing in the Eaton fire zone and four were missing from the Palisades fire. Investigators were determining whether some of the missing could be among the dead but no children were among the missing so far, he said.
Meanwhile, the death toll has risen to 24 over the weekend. Eight deaths were attributed to the Palisades Fire and 16 to the Eaton Fire, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.
An American flag hangs behind a commercial building destroyed by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025.
AP Photo/Noah Berger
The toll could still rise as cadaver dogs systematically search the flat neighborhood. Officials set up a center where people can report missing persons.
Officials were also creating an online database so displaced residents could see if their homes were damaged or destroyed. Meanwhile, LA City Fire Chief Christine Crowley urged people to stay away from the burned neighborhood.
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“There is still an active fire burning in the Palisades area, which makes it extremely, extremely dangerous for the public,” Crowley said at a Sunday morning briefing. “There is no power, no water, broken gas lines, and we have unstable structures.”
Officials warned that the ash may contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.
About 150,000 people remained under evacuation orders in Los Angeles County, with more than 700 residents sheltering in nine shelters, Luna said. Most of the orders in the Palisades area are unlikely to be lifted before the red flag warnings expire Wednesday evening, officials said.
“Please make sure that the first thing on Thursday we start talking about population,” Marron said.
In total, the four fires burned more than 62 square miles (160 square kilometers), an area larger than San Francisco. The Palisades fire was 11% contained and the Eaton fire reached 27% containment. Those two blazes alone account for 59 square miles (about 153 square kilometers).
Crews from California and nine other states are part of an ongoing response that includes about 1,400 fire engines, 84 aircraft and more than 14,000 personnel, including firefighters newly arrived from Mexico.
A car passes homes and vehicles destroyed by the Palisades Fire at the Pacific Palisades Bowl mobile estate on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025, in Los Angeles.
AP Photo/Noah Berger
The fight to protect public and private spaces
After a fierce battle Saturday, firefighters managed to battle flames in Mandeville Canyon, home to Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities, on the coast near Pacific Palisades, where swooping helicopters dropped water as the flames charged down.
The fire swept through chaparral-covered hills and briefly threatened to jump onto Interstate 405 and into densely populated areas in the Hollywood Hills and San Fernando Valley.
Looting remained a concern, with authorities reporting more arrests as vandalism escalated. Los Angeles Police Department Capt. Michael Lorenz said those arrested included two people who went into homes and posed as firefighters.
With California National Guard troops to protect the properties, Governor Gavin Newsom posted on X: “California will not allow looting.”
More than 12,000 structures have been burned in the fire, which started Tuesday north of downtown LA. The cause of the largest fire has not been determined.
Early estimates suggest it could be the nation’s costliest ever, as much as $150 billion, according to Accuweather.
Prisoner firefighters on the front lines
Along with crews from other states and Mexico, hundreds of inmates from the California prison system were also helping to fight the fire. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, about 950 prison firefighters were removing wood and brush to slow the fire’s spread.
The practice is controversial because inmates are underpaid for dangerous and difficult work: $10.24 per day, more for a 24-hour shift, according to the Department of Corrections.
Rebuilding will be a challenge
Newsom issued an executive order on Sunday aimed at speeding up reconstruction by suspending some environmental regulations and ensuring that property tax assessments do not increase.
“We have to let people know we have their backs,” he said. “We want you to come back, rebuild and rebuild with higher quality building standards, more modern standards.”
More than 24,000 people registered for federal assistance made available through President Joe Biden’s major disaster declaration, according to the White House.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Sunday that she has spoken with President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration and expects him to visit the city.
Accused of skimping on leadership
Bass faces a critical test of his leadership during the city’s biggest crisis in decades, but accusations of leadership failure, political recriminations and investigations have begun.
Newsom on Friday ordered state officials to determine why the 117 million-gallon (440 million-liter) reservoir is out of service and some hydrants are dry.
Raymer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press reporters Julie Walker in New York, Sophia Tarin in Chicago, Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia and Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyoming contributed.
