by Michael Snyder, The Economic Collapse Blog:
High winds returned to Los Angeles on Sunday morning, and that is making one of the most catastrophic disasters in U.S. history even worse. Already, more than 60 square miles in the L.A. area have been burned. To put that in perspective, the entire city of Washington D.C. covers just over 68 square miles. I have been trying to find the right words to describe the devastation that we have been witnessing, but I just can’t seem to find words that are sufficient. According to California Governor Gavin Newsom, this is one of the worst natural disasters in the entire history of our nation…
TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/
California Gov. Gavin Newsom told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” Saturday that the Los Angeles-area wildfires will be one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history and called for an independent investigation into the local water supply.
“I think it will be in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope,” Newsom said when asked whether the disaster would be among the nation’s worst ever.
The winds that have been spreading the fires calmed down for a while, but now they have flared back to life…
On Saturday night and into Sunday morning, winds have been in the 35-55 mph range, with some gusts reaching as high as 70 mph in the mountains surrounding Los Angeles.
It becomes very difficult to control fires when wind speeds are this high.
In fact, a Cal Fire public information officer was warning that wind speeds had gotten so high that aircraft that are being used to fight the fires may need to be grounded again…
Chris Harvey, a Cal Fire public information officer, said he was concerned that Sunday’s winds could become strong enough that firefighting aircraft would have to be grounded again. Aerial efforts were suspended for a time last week because of the extraordinarily strong winds, which made it unsafe for aircraft to make their usual drops of water and fire retardant.
What firefighters need more than anything is for the winds to die down.
Unfortunately, we are being told that the region will be under a “red flag warning” until Wednesday…
It’s the last thing that wildfire-ravaged southern California needs, but a red flag warning will span several days, through Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 6 p.m., with strong winds and continuing critical fire weather in the forecast, the National Weather Service announced on Saturday.
The warning indicates that existing fires could spread and new ones could start, meteorologists said. It begins at 6 p.m. Saturday, as fire crews continue to battle the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires, which are still threatening lives and property in Los Angeles County.
The latest red flag warning also includes the Inland Empire and Orange County, and residents throughout Southern California should be prepared for pre-emptive power outages to lessen the likelihood of wildfires being sparked by Southern California Edison or other equipment, officials said.
What is Los Angeles going to look like after several more days of burning?
Right now, the Palisades Fire is being pushed by high winds toward the “ultra-affluent Southern California neighborhoods of Brentwood and Bel Air”…
The devastating Palisades Fire pushed to the northeast, prompting new evacuations in the ultra-affluent Southern California neighborhoods of Brentwood and Bel Air as the threat of more dry winds raised risks after a brief respite.
The spreading flames brought “another night of unimaginable terror and heartbreak,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said early Saturday.
The expanded evacuation area covers some of Los Angeles’ most important cultural institutions, including the Getty Center, an architectural landmark with a world-class art collection.
In a desperate attempt to save it, thousands upon thousands of gallons of pink chemicals are being dropped on Brentwood…
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