Photos Show Why Los Angeles' Fires Were the Worst in City History
Photographs reveal the severity and scale of the fires that raged through the Los Angeles area.
In a couple of hours, entire blocks of Los Angeles were devastated, shredding thriving communities and leaving thousands with only the belongings they carried as they fled their houses to escape fast-moving flames. Over 10,000 structures have burned across approximately 35,000 acres in the region.
The disasters—likely some of the most catastrophic and costly fires to ever strike California—are also the result of an overlap between the Santa Ana wind season and a particularly warm, dry start to winter. Rains typically fall throughout the winter season, reducing the risk of fires. Climate change makes this overlap more likely.
There have been several tales of the raging fights fought by firefighters and the damage that has been done, but as the saying goes, photos really tell the story in a way that words often cannot. Scientific American has compiled a collection of images depicting various aspects of the Los Angeles-area flames.
Los Angeles County firefighters attempt unsuccessfully to obtain water from a hydrant while fighting the Eaton Fire on January 8 in Altadena, California. The demand for water to extinguish the fires was so intense that some hydrants ran dry.