Parts of Los Angeles, California have been burning since Jan. 8, with wildfires causing horrific damages as they leveled neighborhoods, turning homes into ash.
The Palisades Fire has already burned over 23,000 acres while the Eaton Fire burned a little over 14,000 acres, according to NBC News. A slightly smaller fire, Hughes, closer to Santa Clarita, Calif. burned over 10,400 acres while another smaller fire Border 2 near San Diego burned a little over 6,600 acres.
There have been 29 deaths reported from the fires. About 17 of these deaths were caused by the Eaton Fire and 12 from the Palisades Fire. Almost 200,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes from all four fires. The cost of damages also adds up to $20 billion and could exceed $50 billion.
Misinformation was being spread around on President Donald Trump’s Truth Social on the day the fires started, with Trump referring to California Gov. Gavin Newsom as “Newscum.” “Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water…to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way” Trump’s post stated.
Newsom later refuted these claims.
Some Hollywood stars have lost their homes, including couple Leighton Meester (Gossip Girl) and Adam Brody (The O.C.) along with Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld) and more.
Historic landmarks were affected by the fires as well. The Topanga Ranch Motel — which has been in Malibu for over 100 years — was burnt down with the sign still intact. Altadena’s Bunny Museum (featured in Guinness World Records, Ripley’s Believe it or Not and more) was burned down too, with a few bunny items saved.
It does not help that California is known for having a drought problem. People on social media began calling out celebrities such as the Kardashians for their water use. After Khloe Kardashian criticized Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on X, users were quick to point out the family’s past of going over the limit of water usage. The top reply on the post was from user @DaemonOneil stating “yeah. ok” with an image of a Rolling Stone article from 2022 attached titled, “Kardashian’s Among L.A.’s Worst Water Wasters Using 333,000 Gallons Over County Limit In June.”
Meanwhile, other celebrities like Selena Gomez have been spotted helping victims. According to Billboard, Gomez was seen “helping separate and distribute sandwiches to those who have been displaced by the tragedy.” Major companies have also been donating money to support wildfire relief, such as Walmart and Disney.
Although Los Angeles received rain all weekend long, rain could also cause mudslides and flooding. Crews full of supplies for the wildfire relief had to be temporarily moved due to the possibility of mudslides.
The New York Times reported that the rain will help firefighters by soaking the landscape and vegetation. The rainfall of just over an inch only caused a small amount of ash and mud in the streets. It was also announced that the Palisades is 94% contained and the Eaton fires are 98% contained. The official cause of these fires is still unknown.
jcaramag@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @ethanswopephoto, Instagram
