A shocking analysis has found that the devastating Palisades Fire in Los Angeles may have been started by the rekindling of a New Year’s Eve blaze.
Evidence reviewed by The Washington Post suggests that the Palisades inferno was ignited in the same spot where fire crews put out flames a week before – and residents claim their response the second time was much slower.
The Palisades Fire – the largest of the three blazes ripping through Los Angeles -ignited on January 7 and has scorched 23,713 acres and is only 13 per cent contained as of Sunday.
A week before that blaze broke out, firefighters were called to the Pacific Palisades shortly after midnight on New Year’s Day to a small brush fire residents claim was started by fireworks.
The blaze, called the Lachman Fire, was held at eight acres and reported contained at 4:46 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD).
Satellite imagery obtained by the Post identified a burn scar of the New Year’s Eve fire. Additional imagery taken on Tuesday when the Palisades Fire broke out indicates that the origin of the smoke overlapped with the burn scar.
The bombshell evidence comes as the death toll rose to 24 and locals were warned to brace for ‘life-threatening’ winds which could spur on the fires.
‘The general duration of this is not looking good,’ meteorologist Rose Schoenfield warned.
Evidence suggests that the Palisades inferno was ignited in the same spot where fire crews put out flames a week before (pictured: plumes of smoke rise from the Palisades Fire)
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said authorities won’t consider allowing displaced residents to return home until after that warning has been lifted
The weather is expected to contribute to another stint of dangerous and potentially extreme fire conditions which could exacerbate the fires already burning and cause more new ones to pop up.
Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said: ‘It’s very important that the community understands that these wind events are coming.’
These conditions have prompted a red flag warning until 6pm Wednesday.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said authorities won’t consider allowing displaced residents to return home until after that warning has been lifted.
Authorities are yet to confirm what caused any of the blazes, but vowed to conduct thorough investigations and alert the public.
The similarities and proximity between the now-burning Palisades inferno and the New Years Day fire in the same area have sparked questions about whether there is an obvious link between the two.
University of California at Berkeley professor Michael Gollner told the Washington Post that fires can rekindle despite appearing burnt out.
‘We know that fires rekindle and transition from smoldering to flaming,’ she said.
The Palisades Fire – the largest of the three blazes ripping through Los Angeles – ignited on January 7 has scorched 23,713 acres and is only 11 percent contained
The weather warning also prevents locals from returning home to inspect the damage
Dozens of people are unaccounted for as evacuees locked out of their suburbs face an anxious wait to return home and see what – if anything – remains
‘It’s certainly possible that something from that previous fire, within a week, had rekindled and caused the ignition.’
LAFD spokesperson Margaret Stewart told the San Francisco Chronicle that crews stayed behind at the New Year’s Eve fire to ensure it did not reignite.
‘Crews were there throughout the whole day mopping up and making sure there was no smoldering,’ Stewart said.
‘We use hand tools to dig up the dirt, we use water, we use foam, we use heavy equipment to bulldoze around it.
However, LAFD radio transmissions obtained by the Washington Post suggest that dispatchers discussed the location of the repeat fire.
‘The foot of the fire started real close to where the last fire was on New Year’s Eve,’ said a Los Angeles County firefighter.’
‘It looks like it’s going to make a good run,’ another person said.
Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley was asked directly about the similarities and possibility that one sparked another on Sunday afternoon.
Residents claim firefighters’ response the Palisades Fire is slower than it was for the New Year’s Eve fire
The weather is expected to contribute to another stint of dangerous and potentially extreme fire conditions which could exacerbate the fires already burning and cause more new ones to pop up
‘We do not have any information that there’s any connections but that’s the good thing when we bring in an outside resource that is going to look into every single detail,’ Crowley said.
LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell assured the public there is a coordinated effort to determine the root cause of each of the fires, which together have become the worst in the city’s history.
Resident Michel Valentine said the response for the New Year’s incident was swift and impressive.
However, a week later Valentine said the fire was ripping for about 45 minutes when he finally saw a helicopter go over it, but it didn’t have water.
‘For the longest time, I didn’t see any police, firefighters, not on the ground or in the air,’ Valentine said.
‘I was disappointed because the second fire was moving so fast, and there was no one there.’
Jacob Bendix, a professor emeritus of geography and the environment at Syracuse University, told the newspaper that the evidence shows that it is possible that the fire reignited.
‘The evidence you have here indicates that it is at least conceivable that remnants from the earlier Lachman Fire gave rise to the Palisades Fire,’ said Bendix.
LAFD radio transmissions obtained by the Washington Post suggest that dispatchers discussed the location of the repeat fire
‘While the passage of time reduces the probability of restarting, the elapsed time does not make it unrealistic, especially in the absence of intervening precipitation.’
Photographs taken by a Palisades resident and obtained by the Chronicle also show the two blazes in the same spot.
‘Looking at the two photos, I would agree with you that there appears to be an overlap of the two fires, but it is hard to say for sure as I cannot see on the other side of the ridge,’ retired Cal Fire deputy chief Alan Carlson said. ‘Wind direction looks to be consistent with a possible rekindle of the first fire.
‘An 8-acre fire in that fuel type is also consistent with potential re-kindle. Gusty winds are consistent with hot materials blowing across control lines.’
Officials are still determining the cause of the New Year’s Eve fire, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has ‘taken the lead in determining the origin and cause of the Pacific Palisades fire.’
So far, the California fires have killed at least 24 people, and wiped out an estimated 40,300 acres of land, 12,300 homes and other structures. They have caused losses surpassing a staggering $135 billion and forced 180,000 people to evacuate.
The Palisades Fire is the largest of the Los Angeles wildfires, burning through 23,713 acres – while the Eaton Fire in Pasadena is the deadliest blaze, accounting for 16 deaths, scorching 14,117 acres.
Governor Gavin Newsom was slammed for car crash interview Sunday as he tried to shift blame for LA fires.
So far, the California fires have killed at least 16 people, and wiped out an estimated 40,300 acres of land, 12,300 homes and other structures
They have also caused around $57 billion in economic damage and forced 180,000 people to evacuate
Fire trucks drive by a mobile home park that was destroyed by the Palisades Fire
Newsom, wearing a black button down untucked with a pair of jeans, spoke with his hands all throughout the 18-minute-long conversation that took place in Altadena, a community that’s been ravaged by the Eaton Fire.
He often clapped and made other big gesticulations as he answered questions about the catastrophic blazes – which are now some of the worst in the city’s history.
The California Gov. also suggested that LA’s failed water system is to blame for the crisis – while claiming that he was not trying to point fingers at anyone in particular for the death and destruction.
Meanwhile, LA Mayor Karen Bass has been slammed for smirking and smiling in her latest ‘tone-deaf’ video response to the devastating fires in Los Angeles.
Bass has faced fierce backlash after posting a video message about the city’s historic infernos, where she appeared to be smiling as she discussed residents’ ‘unbearable loss.’
The controversial clip showed a rather chipper Bass delivering what was meant to be a somber message about the devastating, fiery crisis plaguing her city.
While appearing to smile at times during her address, Bass said: ‘To any of you and all of you who have experienced a loss, the grief, the anger, the just utter shock – I’ve seen the devastation, it is unbelievable the amount of loss that people have experienced.’