Brush fires, amplified by extreme winds running up to 80 MPH, has given rise to a blazing landscape of wildfires in Los Angeles. There are 3 MAJOR fires accounted for, so far. The Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire and the Hurst Fire. The biggest of them all (Palisades Fire) has spread a total of 23,713 acres and is only 11% contained, marking it the worst sight the Pacific Palisades has ever seen. Close to 200,000 people are under evacuation notice, and this number continues to grow. Although the hurricane-force winds have calmed for the moment, the threat of rising winds still looms over the city of Los Angeles.
Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass
California Governor Gavin Newsom has already taken steps towards addressing the drastic situation. He has signed an executive order to speed up the rebuilding process of homes, stating that “[w]hen the fires are extinguished, victims who have lost their homes and businesses must be able to rebuild quickly and without roadblocks.” Under this order, certain permit and review requirements under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) have been suspended in order to streamline the recovery process. Furthermore, he doubled the California National Guard deployment in LA to 1680 members in order to bolster support for the affected citizens.
On the other hand, Mayor of LA, Karen Bass faces intense scrutiny for being out of the country on a diplomatic excursion when the fires began, as well as cutting the firefighter budget by 17.5 million dollars months beforehand. Furthermore, water shortages have also placed LA officials under even more criticism for a lack of preparation. Public figures have come out and expressed their disapproval. Elon Musk, for example, called Bass “utterly incompetent” on X, leading a conservative hammering on her. However, the danger of living in the Pacific Palisades was expressed for years before by experts, and Bass also emphasized that the budget was boosted later on. Whether or not Bass’s decisions had a significant impact on the current situation, the reality is that we still face the daunting task of containing the fires, alleviating homelessness and reconstructing the lost environment.
Looking Forward
The process of rebuilding both the physical landscape and the mental culture of the affected people will take time. The fires are far from extinguished, and the death toll will be likely to keep increasing as time continues to tick away. Amidst all the chaos, this event also begs a larger question at hand. Is this a sign of what is to come, as the issue of climate change continues to be pushed aside? How will this affect Trump’s policies as he enters office, if anything? As always, the future is filled with scary and uncertain possibilities, and it is key that we stay united and hopeful as fear continues to burn through our country.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/08/us/california-fire-palisades-evacuation.html
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/01/10/us/fires-los-angeles-california
https://abcnews.go.com/US/live-updates/california-fires-live-updates-santa-ana-winds-rage/? id=117541907
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/01/10/karen-bass-criticism-los-angeles-fires/77584894007/
