Two largest wildfires, the Palisades fire and Eaton fire, have become more contained, but dry winds could return next week. Containment of the massive wildfires in Los Angeles was improving as the extreme winds that made it challenging to fight the blazes continued to recede Friday and gave the city some relief during the ongoing disaster.
Cooler air will continue to bring much-needed humidity to the region over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service’s latest forecast. But dry winds could return late Monday or early Tuesday. The two largest wildfires, the Palisades fire and Eaton fire, have become more contained and have remained in their footprints over the last week. As of Friday morning, the Palisades fire was 27% contained and the Eaton fire was 55% contained. Both fires have been burning since 7 January.
The fires’ death toll rose by two people Thursday afternoon, bringing the total killed by the fires to 27. Ten were killed in the Palisades fire while 17 were killed in the Eaton fire, according to the LA county medical examiner’s office. Officials said that personnel are still working through evacuated neighborhoods and expect the death toll to rise.
Officials are utilizing “cadaver dogs and trying to locate remains and recover them, so that we can be accountable to the families who have missing relatives and do it in the most respectful way possible”, Jim McDonnell, chief of the LA police department, said at a news conference Wednesday. The LA county sheriff’s department told the LA Times that 31 people remain missing.
