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A day of small victories by firefighters against raging Los Angeles wildfires threatened to be reversed as winds that have spread multiple blazes across the region picked up again late on Thursday, threatening several densely populated neighbourhoods.
The Santa Ana winds that have spread embers across the region abated on Thursday morning, allowing authorities to beat back a new fire in the Hollywood Hills that forced evacuations near some of show business’s most iconic locales, such as the famed Hollywood Walk of Fame.
But gusts picked up again later in the day, making it difficult to clamp down on the biggest wildfires that remain in the Pacific Palisades, farther to the west of downtown LA, and near Pasadena to the north.
About 180,000 residents are still under evacuation orders across Los Angeles county, and an additional 200,000 are in areas under warning. The multiple blazes spreading across more than 28,000 acres have resulted in the deaths of at least five people.
“This is absolutely an unprecedented, historic firestorm, but we are all hands on deck,” Karen Bass, the Los Angeles mayor, said during a press conference. “First and foremost, we need to stay united. We need to stay strong. A united LA is the way we will recover.”
The return of high winds helped spark new fires. An extension of the existing Eaton fire menacing Pasadena tore through Mount Wilson on Thursday around noon. The area is home to a historic observatory and critical antennas that local television stations rely on.
Police presence in areas gutted by fires ramped up overnight to stave off burglary, a common concern after natural disasters when entire neighbourhoods are left empty. Officials said on Thursday they had arrested 20 people for looting — a figure they expected to rise.
“We continue to conduct roving patrols,” said Robert Luna, the sheriff for Los Angeles county. Officials are “providing security in evacuation areas to prevent anyone who may attempt to engage in criminal behaviour like looting”.
The blaze threatening Hollywood, which broke out on Wednesday night, was one of the few success stories for beleaguered firefighters. By Thursday morning, an evacuation order for the area had been lifted and the fire had largely been beaten back. It was the first sign that diminishing winds and new resources might help authorities get an upper hand on the fires.
The Sunset fire quickly spread in Runyon Canyon late on Wednesday before helicopters and fire trucks swept into the area to bring it under control.
The blaze was the sixth to break out in Los Angeles county in recent days. It threatened iconic landmarks, including the Hollywood sign, and forced evacuations along Hollywood Boulevard, which is home to the famed TCL Chinese Theatre — formerly known as Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.
“We’re through the critical wind event,” Margaret Stewart, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department, said in an interview with TV station KTLA on Thursday morning. “We anticipate that same operation throughout today and while we don’t yet have containment, we are working towards it.”
During the pause in the winds, residents of the Palisades began to get a glimpse at the sheer scale of destruction. Many streets look as though a bomb had gone off, with entire blocks razed to the ground.
Strewn metal appliances and fireplaces were some of the only remnants in residential neighbourhoods. Many of the businesses in the Palisades — including its two grocery stores — were destroyed.
The fires have weighed on the city’s all-important entertainment industry. Work in Hollywood has halted, and pre-Oscar screenings and celebrations have been postponed. Warner Bros shut down production in Burbank because of the fires, and Paramount postponed the premiere of its film Better Man.
The fires have also become a political flashpoint, as Republicans, including president-elect Donald Trump, have blamed Democratic leadership in Los Angeles and California, as well as President Joe Biden, for failing to adequately prepare for and respond to the fires.
“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. “It’s ashes, and Gavin Newscum should resign,” he added, referring to the state’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom. “This is all his fault!!!”
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