Over the weekend, the wind has shifted and pushed the flames towards previously undamaged areas. The areas affected so far correspond to almost two Paris in total.
The US military is ready to intervene to help limit the fires, says Deanne Criswell, head of the federal emergency management agency FEMA, according to CNBC.
Despite large efforts to get the largest of the fires, the one in Pacific Palisades, under control, it has grown and spread eastward and northward with the wind, among other things towards the densely populated San Fernando Valley.
We are completely exhausted, says Sarah Cohen, who has her house in the Tarazana neighborhood, to Los Angeles Times.
Every time they drop water, it gets better. Then it gets worse again, she says.
Water Bombers
Over the weekend, the rescue service has worked intensively – and seemingly successfully – including with water bombing to stop the fire from spreading into residential areas in Brentwood and Encino, where several have had to evacuate their homes.
52-year-old Alex Rade tells Los Angeles Times that they had to leave their home when they saw the fire from Pacific Palisades approaching.
When it got dark, we saw it as a big glow and it felt like the fire was approaching. Then the smoke plumes came too and moved closer in a very dramatic way.
Can Worsen
According to the latest update, the fire is only controlled to 11 percent and has simultaneously grown to 9,500 hectares.
The second major fire in southern California, in the area around Altadena, is over 5,700 hectares and controlled to 27 percent.
In total, this means that just the two largest fires correspond to an area of almost two Paris.
The concern for further spread in the coming days is increasing, as the winds are expected to intensify.
"The weather conditions will unfortunately worsen again in southern California and persist at least until the beginning of next week. This can lead to existing fires spreading and new ones developing," says the weather agency NWS according to AFP.
16 people have been confirmed dead in the fires so far, and about as many people are missing. At least 12,000 buildings are destroyed, according to the authorities, reports AFP
