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LA Fires Check In Most Serious Wind early Tues AM, FEMA and other locations, and more (w/updates) [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-01-13
Captioned in article below
We are expecting more dangerous high winds early Tuesday morning.
The LA Times for now has removed their fire reporting from behind their paywall, so you should be able to read this:
Weather service issues its most severe fire warning for L.A. as winds pick up The ominous “particularly dangerous situation” warning was first issued by the local National Weather Service office in October 2020, and then in December 2020 — and then not again until 2024. Issuing this warning “is one of the loudest ways that we can shout,” said Rose Schoenfeld, a National Weather Service meteorologist. **** “Do NOT do anything that could spark a fire,” the weather service said. The particularly dangerous situation warning was set to go into effect at 4 a.m. Tuesday and continue through noon Wednesday. LA Times
To be clear, we are under red flag warnings today but the Particularly Dangerous Situation runs Tuesday 4am through Wednesday noon.
From weather.gov for Los Angeles:
This is the caption for the image above. Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Red Flag Warnings Ventura and Los Angeles Counties Extreme Risk — Take Immediate Action ***3 PDS Areas (are pointed out on map) ONE: One area is Western Santa Monica. TWO: A large area runs from Ventura to areas around Ojai, up north and includes Fillmore, comes close to Santa Clarita, runs east into the San Gabriel Mountains north of Burbank and the area north of the Eaton Fire, and areas of the San Fernando Valley, especially the northern part. THREE: The I-5 Corridor north of Santa Clarita PDS Timing: Tuesday 4AM — Noon Wednesday Do NOT do anythign that could spark a fire Have multiple ways to receive evacuation information Visit www.fire.ca.gov/prepare: Develop a wildire action plan Peak winds for this event will be weaker than those last week. Nevertheless, winds will be strong enough to potentially cause explosive fire growth. Weather: 45-70 mph gusts, locally damaging; 8-15% relative humidity weather.gov/LosAngeles Weather Forecast Office — Los Angeles/Oxnard, CA Updated Sunday January 12, 2025 at 1:30pm.
Today:
Winds will gain strength Monday when a red flag warning goes into effect for parts of Southern California ahead of an more severe fire weather warning as two large wildfires burn in Los Angeles County. The red flag conditions return after a weekend when winds diminished, allowing firefighters to increase containment of the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire, two of the most destructive wildfires on record in California. The fires started Jan. 7 during a powerful Santa Ana windstorm. NBC News Los Angeles
UPDATE Monday 12:57pm Adding this information from Daniel Swain’s Weather West post:
This week, another “retrograding” (i.e., “westward against-prevailing-flow-moving”) low pressure system will move across California. It will not, unfortunately, bring any precipitation; it will, however, once again set up a surface pressure gradient favorable for strong offshore winds across a broad swath of Southern California for several days in a row (Mon to Wed-ish). The airmass during this period will remain very dry across SoCal, too, with relative humidities commonly being under 20% and locally 10% or lower at times. At higher elevations more susceptible to strong Santa Ana winds, peak winds during the upcoming event could even approach the very strong levels we saw during last Tue/Wed’s event. However, it is very unlikely that lower elevation valley areas will see winds nearly as strong as last week’s exceptionally strong gusts that pushed the Eaton Fire into Altadena. Such winds on the mountaintops are not as rare as when they occur at lower elevations; they will still pose an extreme fire weather threat where they occur, but hopefully somewhat less of a threat to the densely populated urban fringe of LA. Daniel Swain at Weather West
So everyone be safe. Please add information about the wind warnings and advisories that may be helpful to me and others here in SoCal.
Side-note on accessibility
The wather.gov site above is not accessible for many people with disabilities. They do not provide a text caption for that image so people who rely on screen readers cannot read. I was able to transcribe it but it was difficult for me to read.
Also, there is no way to really have “multiple ways to receive evacuation information” because the systems that have been set up, including cell phone warnings, are faulty and not accessible to all.
Device and user interface accessibility issues is an area I’ve worked on my whole life, including the present time. That’s a long story and an ongoing area in which tech jingo-ism makes people within those industries believe they’re creating accessible solutions; whereas, actual accessibility is continually being fought in the courts. They mistake “compliance,” as currently identified by law, for “accessibility.
So our county departments and other government agencies falsely believe that many of their choices are accessible when they’re not.
Being a person with disabilities, there is much about our plans, including ones I’m sharing, that are ability-biased toward able-bodied people. If I evacuate, unlike many of my peers, I will be cut off from all communication except phone calls themselves until I either return home or start my new unhoused life.
But, to quote Adele, “at least I can say that I’ve tried” to head off before-hand and fix these problems after the fact over the past 4 decades.
Anyway. End note on accessibility.
UPDATE Monday 2:41pm
The LA Times digs into the question of whether clearing brush would have helped prevent these fires.
Did these and other second-guessers have a point? Scientists, wildfire specialists and firefighting officials had differing viewpoints. But several of these experts — including strong proponents of brush clearance — said that the winds fanning the flames were so fierce, and ground conditions so dry, that clearing more shrubs wouldn’t have had a significant effect. “All of the brush clearance, fuel breaks — they’re very effective on what we would consider a normal day,” said Chief Brian Fennessy of the Orange County Fire Authority. “But what you’re talking about here is probably less than 1% of all the fires that we respond to in Southern California.” The Palisades fire ignited Jan. 7 amid hurricane-force winds, with gusts of up to 100 mph recorded in some areas. “You could have put a 10-lane freeway in front of that fire and it would not have slowed it one bit,” Fennessy said. LA Times
Also, please note elsewhere in this post where I share the Mother Jones article about the Eaton Fire’s origins.
That LA Times article above gets into how Rick Caruso’s talking points are driving a silly, self-righteous second guessing game of easy criticism.
At a time when we’re trying to survive. Let’s keep reality based!
Visits to burned areas suspended
For a time police were allowing people to go back to their residents, but they have suspended this for safety reasons.
Los Angeles police say they're ending escorts to burned neighborhoods in the interest of public safety On Sunday, teams began working with cadaver dogs to search neighborhoods. "That will result in crime scene preservation efforts and the recovery of remains," McDonnell clarified. He also noted that strong winds returning to the area would create an issue for people's safety, especially in an environment as unstable as where they were headed. CBS News Los Angeles
As I’ve mentioned in comments and possibly my previous posts, I live right next to the 110 freeway. Many times in the past week I’ve heard many, many sirens rising. I step out to see lines and lines of police cars, mostly, although at times these have been other emergency vehicles.
Last night there were many police cars moving north. I suspect they are vehicles (in all these cases) coming from other districts to help. I suspect last night’s line were going to Altadena to help in the search for bodies.
I have read that the count is currently up to 25 people deceased from these fires, but this number will be going up.
Here’s an article from last evening from NBC News Los Angeles What we know about the victims killed in the California wildfires.
Here’s an article from this morning from ABC News Los Angeles What we know about those killed in the LA wildfires.
Where the Fires Stand
Here’s the tally of current fires from this morning:
Jan 13, 2025, 8:16 AM Wildfires burning in SoCal: Numbers at a glance Here are all the current wildfires burning in Southern California at a glance. Palisades Fire - 23,713 acres
- 14% containment
- 8 deaths
- 5,316 structures burned Eaton Fire in San Gabriel Valley - 14,117 acres
- 33% contained
- Approximately 7,081 structures believed to be damaged or destroyed (structures includes vehicles)
- 16 deaths
- 5 firefighter injuries Hurst Fire in Sylmar - 799 acres - 95% contained Kenneth Fire in West Hills - 1,052 acres - 100% contained ABC News Los Angeles
LA Fire News Round-up (Predators Edition)
As many here know, I have been homeless before and I live in a rent-controlled apartment. My Landlords have been aggressively evicting tenants over the past year, including evicting an elderly man across from me for Christmas.
This event is going to impact our housing situation even more.
‘Selling Sunset’ Star Jason Oppenheim Exposes Landlords for Inflating Rent After L.A. Wildfires: ‘This Isn’t the Time to Be Taking Advantage’ As deadly Los Angeles wildfires continue to devastate the Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Eaton Canyon and nearby regions, leaving thousands of people displaced and frantically searching for shelter, online conversation has turned to Los Angeles landlords who are taking advantage of the emergency situation. Oppenheim told BBC about a client of his who fell victim to price gouging, a practice that is prohibited in California if rent prices rise over 10% during a declared state of emergency. “I had a client, we sent him to a house that was asking $13,000 a month,” Oppenheim explained. “He offered $20,000 a month and he offered to pay six months upfront, and the landlord said, ‘No, I want $23,000 a month.’ There are price gouging laws in California, they’re just being ignored right now, and this isn’t the time to be taking advantage of situations.” Variety
The rich are making their moves now, as this sensitive headline, also from Variety, shows. (The article is more informative and the people interviewed a bit more empathetic, but I share to show the early movement that is impacting our rent in trickle-down fashion.)
Devastating Fires Send L.A. Residents Scrambling for Luxury Homes in a Tight Market: ‘Get Me to Newport’ Some homeowners may not be able to recoup the value of their now-destroyed homes. In July, State Farm dropped coverage for 72,000 houses and apartments in California, including 1,600 in Pacific Palisades alone. On Friday, Ricardo Lara, California’s insurance commissioner, vowed that the state would impose a one-year moratorium to prevent homeowners insurance cancellations and non-renewals in the fire-scarred areas. Variety
And now a word about Some of Our Predators:
California officials warn of price gouging, scams as wildfire victims seek help During a press conference Saturday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said his office has received reports of hotels, rental properties, and other businesses charging too much for goods and services. "We should not be engaged in price gouging, whether it's groceries or rent," he said. "We are very serious about this, and the governor's office, on ensuring that there is no price gouging and that anyone engaged in it is held accountable." ABC News Los Angeles
UPDATE MONDAY 5PM PT
Here’s a FEMA Page on Disaster Fraud (thank you belinda ridgewood):
FEMA Housing Inspectors An inspector will: Never ask for your nine-digit registration number. They already have it in their records.
Always wear an official government badge to identify themselves. Ask the person to show you their identification.
Not ask for bank information. FEMA never charges a fee for an inspection.
Not climb on roofs or enter crawl spaces. FEMA
Please share any information that may be helpful to those of us on the ground as regards false information being spread and about potential scams in progress.
LOCATIONS FOR HELP
UPDATE Monday 1:39pm PT
Here’s another site to donate:
Jimmy Kimmel Opens Fire Donation Center On Show’s Backlot The center is open now until 6 p.m. at 6901 Hawthorn Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90028, and they are accepting items including bottled water, Gatorade, baby food, pet food, non-perishable food items such as canned goods or individually wrapped snacks, like bags of pretzels or chips, new toiletries and hygiene products, new socks and underwear, diapers and baby wipes. Deadline
FEMA Locations:
FEMA Locations (yesterday and today) From Watch Duty Palisades Fire event page: Cole Euken • Staff Reporter About 13 hours ago · Jan 11 at 10:23 PM FEMA staff will be available to offer assistance with applying for aid and understanding your options at the following library locations on Sunday, Jan 12 and Monday, Jan 13 from 9 am - 5 pm, per LA County Library's website . La Cañada Flintridge Library - 4545 N Oakwood Ave, La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011
La Crescenta Library - 2809 Foothill Blvd, La Crescenta, CA 91214
Live Oak Library - 22 W Live Oak Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007
San Fernando Library - 217 N Maclay Ave, San Fernando, CA 91340
San Gabriel Library - 500 S Del Mar Ave, San Gabriel, CA 91776
Temple City Library - 5939 Golden West Ave, Temple City, CA 91780
West Hollywood Library - 625 N San Vicente Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069
Here are the World Central Kitchen sites from YESTERDAY as shared in the Watch Duty app at the Palisades and Eaton Fire pages. If anyone has an update today, please share in the comments.
Here is the link to World Central Kitchen site.
LA County Parks has established a Care Camp for kids 5-17 displaced by the fires. It is currently full but there is a waiting list.
To support families impacted by the Eaton fire, LA County Parks Care Camps will provide youth and teens with a supportive space for fun and recreation including music, arts and crafts, sports activities and field trips to the LA County Natural History Museum, La Brea Tar Pits, Dodger Stadium, & more. Breakfast, snacks, and lunch will be provided daily; teens will also get supper. MONDAY TO FRIDAY
JANUARY 13 TO JANUARY 31, 2025. YOUTH CAMPS AGE 5-12: 8 am to 5 pm
TEEN CAMPS AGE 13-17: 8 am to 7 pm For those under mandatory evacuation or significantly impacted by the fires. If you are interested in registering for a Care Camp, please click the link below and fill out your information and interested Care Camp sites and we will contact you with further information. Please click here for Care Camp Waiting List LA County Parks is seeking donations to support Care Camps. Needed items include: toys, stuffies, clothing, jackets and shoes for youth ages 5-17, pajamas, undergarments. Please send an email with a description of your donation items along with your phone number and/or email to
[email protected] and we will contact you. Thank you for your support. LA County Parks site
Please share any useful resources in the comments.
UPDATE MONDAY 5:02pm PT
Here’s an article on how to be careful when giving and how to avoid scams. (Also thank you belinda ridgewood.)
How to help victims of the Los Angeles wildfires As wildfires continue to devastate Los Angeles, leaving thousands displaced and causing widespread destruction, experts urge long-term support and careful giving. NBC News
UPDATE Monday 12:37 pm Adding this article from Mother Jones.
It is an interview with….
Jon Keeley, a research scientist with the US Geological Survey and an adjunct professor in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California, Los Angeles.
He addresses the nature of the Eaton Fire (Altadena/Pasadena):
As a scientist who’s watching all of this happen, do you think there is any context that’s been missing from the coverage? It’s important to recognize where the fire started. The Eaton Fire started right in the middle of a developed area. It’s not one of these fires that started off in the mountains east of LA and then burned down into LA so that people had a chance to plan. This started right within the urban environment. That’s the primary reason why it was so destructive. Mother Jones
Also in that article he addresses the use of goats to help prevent fires.
To better understand how this happened and what anyone can do about it, I spoke to Keeley, who explained what the Santa Ana winds are, how climate change comes into play, what homeowners can do to protect themselves, and how goats—yes, goats—can help. To better understand how this happened and what anyone can do about it, I spoke to Keeley, who explained what the Santa Ana winds are, how climate change comes into play, what homeowners can do to protect themselves, and how goats—yes, goats—can help. ***** Firefighters do need space to fight a fire, so doing fuel treatments around homes makes sense if you want to defend homes. However, prescription burning can be dangerous in Southern California, so [officials] often use animals like goats to reduce the fuels.
Other Reading
If you haven’t already, you may wish to visit my post LA Fires Check In - FEMA Locations Mandeville Canyon/Palisades Fire update and Wind Forecast and my Friday post LA Fires Check In, Resource Sharing (Between the Storms), and a bit about Altadena (w/updates). There is information there (in these posts and comments) that may be helpful and informative.
I also wrote about the California Insurance Commission’s moratorium on dropping coverage in impacted areas at One Year Moratorium set by Cal Insurance Commissioner (protecting homeowners who lost homes to fire).
Also, on Thursday I wrote about my experience trying to figure out whether fires had actually advanced based on a fake/AI photo shared here at DK and left up for many hours at Please don't share AI/fake photos of LA icon sites burning (we're trying to survive here).
I hope everyone will read this. I wrote it to provide a meaningful example of the immediate harm and threat to survival spreading misinformation via AI/fake photos here.
UPDATE: And here is a Google Doc with resources.
Please let me know if any of these links do not work.
Personal News
As many of you in KTK and other sites know, I have been coordinating moves for my company from one building to another since last July. We were set to move the last people on January 10, but these fires put that off. I have been working from home due to move/repaint since November and was set to go back last week.
Then, due to the fires, that was cancelled, but I still had to go in to re-tag boxes for the move. We were going to do that Wednesday, then Thursday, then Friday, then today…. But our company has thankfully closed the buildings.
But the worry over that has been making me nuts. I’m a wheelchair/cane user and so I really don’t want to be out there driving during wind events. I would be meeting other people to help me tag in the building, so I wasn’t worried there.
But today my boss took me off the list to go in and if the Real Estate department says we can go I don’t have to go in until this wind event is over.
I was trying to be a good trooper but the stress of trying to plan this and go in (which is difficult for me even on “normal” days due to my mobility issues) has been too much.
So that’s one set of worries off my mental plate.
Please be thoughtful
This is a Disaster Check In post specifically for those of us trying to survive.
Please, if possible, try to keep politics out of this blog. This includes any comments about what people “should” do. I regret that this post may need to be taken down due to political and/or self-certain or judgmental thread-jacking. In that event I will do what I can to create a new post soon thereafter, but obviously all of this has been time consuming.
Please, if possible, try to regard this post as an information sharing post for those of us trying to survive.
Thank you.
Final request
My internet may go down today so I may be out of touch.
Please be safe. Please share information that can be helpful to our survival in the coming days.
Also, if anyone finds these posts useful, I would appreciate if you would share my latest LA Fires Check In post in any open post threads. I plan to publish one each day if I can until this is over and I have been updating into the evening in each case.
And please feel free to add tags that you deem appropriate to this and my other posts.
Thank you.
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