Washington:
The city of Los Angeles in the US state of California has been facing a devastating forest fire for a week. There was a fire in the forests here on January 6, which spread throughout the city within no time. According to CNN report, 40 thousand acres of area of the city is affected by the fire. By Sunday, about 38,629 acres of area had been burnt. This is equal to about 60 square miles. The size of Paris, the capital of France, is 105 square kilometers i.e. 41 square miles. This means that an area of Los Angeles larger than Paris has been burnt to ashes due to wildfire. So far 24 people have lost their lives in the fire. 16 people are reported missing. According to the report, till now America has suffered a loss ranging from Rs 11.60 lakh crore to Rs 13 lakh crore in the fire.
Los Angeles is the second largest city in America after New York. This is the worst fire ever to occur in California. Many countries have come together with America to extinguish the fire. Even Iran has forgotten its enmity and offered help to America. Let us know where the fire has spread in Los Angeles? In what percentage of the area has the fire been controlled so far? Which countries are helping America in extinguishing the fire:-
Where did the fire spread?
According to CNN report, an area of 23,700 acres of Pacific Palisades, located about 32 kilometers from Los Angeles, is in the grip of fire. So far 11% of the fire has been controlled. An area of 14,000 acres of Eaton is in the grip of fire, out of which firefighters have controlled 27% of the fire. The fire has spread across 800 acres of area in Hurst. So far 89% of the fire has been controlled. The area of fire in Lydia spread up to 400 acres. 100% fire has been controlled here.
An orgy of fire in the forests of Los Angeles, an area equal to 5 football grounds being destroyed in 1 minute, horrifying pictures
How much damage has been caused by the fire so far?
According to news agency AFP and Reuters, the fire in Los Angeles (LA) has caused a loss of 135-150 billion US dollars so far. In Indian rupees this figure ranges from around Rs 11.60 lakh crore to Rs 13 lakh crore.
-So far 24 people have died due to the forest fire spreading in Los Angeles city of California. 16 people are reported missing in Eaton and Palisades.
-An area of 40 thousand acres of the city has been affected in the fire. Out of these, an area of 29 thousand acres has been destroyed.
-More than 10 thousand buildings have been burnt to ashes in the fire that spread from the forest. About 30 thousand houses have been damaged.
-Due to the fire, 50 thousand people had to leave their homes. 1 lakh people are living without electricity.
-The houses of many Hollywood stars including Paris Hilton, Steven Spielberg, Mandy Moore, Ashton Kutcher have been destroyed by the fire.
-Due to the fire, many celebrities had to leave their homes and shift to other places.
Many countries are helping in extinguishing the fire
-Firefighters have arrived from Mexico to help America in dealing with the fire.
Forgetting its enmity, Iran has also extended a helping hand to America in this difficult time. Help has been offered by Iran’s Red Crescent Society i.e. IRCS.
– Canada has sent its CL-415 aircraft i.e. Super Scoopers to extinguish the fire. The Los Angeles County Fire Department has borrowed two Super Scoopers from the Canadian government on a 30-year lease. Of these, only one is operational at present. One is currently in damaged condition.
Ground Report: NDTV reached outside the burning houses in Los Angeles, what is the latest situation? Know from Vishnu Som
NEW: FBI has launched an investigation to find the drone operator who put a 3×6 hole in Canada’s Super Scooper aircraft which was fighting the LA fires.
The plane was initially grounded but thankfully, two more Super Scoopers are on the way, according to The War Zone.
“I’d just… pic.twitter.com/drKsj6r4da
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 13, 2025
Understand the specialty of Super Scoopers
Super Scoopers is an aircraft which has been designed to extinguish forest fires. It can walk on both water and land. This aircraft can fill up to 1600 gallons of water very quickly by moving over the sea. It can be mixed into foam in a jiffy. Also, by flying at a speed of 350 kilometers, it can extinguish the fire by spraying water on it. The wingspan of Super Scoopers is 65 feet. Its spread is 93 feet. It takes only 12 seconds to fill 1600 gallons of water. Its pilot can pour all the water on the fire at once. Or one can use the 4 doors of the aircraft one by one.
People paying Rs 1.7 lakh per hour to extinguish fire
The government is making all efforts to extinguish the fire spreading in Los Angeles, America. Till now 100% control on the fire has not been achieved. People living in posh areas are taking the help of private companies to save their luxury properties from fire. For this these people have to pay huge amounts. According to a report in ‘Washington Times’, people in posh areas have to pay 2 thousand dollars every hour to private companies to save themselves from fire. In Indian rupees it is around Rs 1.7 lakh.
Companies are providing many types of services
According to a report in Los Angeles Times, private fire extinguishing companies are providing many types of services. This includes spraying fire retardants around houses or covering trees with anti-fire chemicals. One such company, Targerson Wildfire Defense Systems, is sending its employees with water hoses, fire retardant gel and its own water tankers.
How is the AQI of burnt down Los Angeles still better than Delhi? Know
Are you facing difficulties in extinguishing the fire?
-The fire tender is facing all kinds of problems in extinguishing the fire. For example, fire is spreading due to the speed of wind. ‘Santa Sana’ winds are the biggest reason for igniting fires in the forests of Los Angeles. These winds are very hot, which blow during the autumn season. These winds trouble Southern California the most.
-According to BBC report, due to winter season, strong winds are blowing in the city at a speed of about 160 km per hour. Due to this the fire is spreading, which is becoming difficult for the fire tender team to control.
-The fire has become so severe that all the water hydrants in California have dried up. According to the Los Angeles Water Department, all water hydrants in California were fully operational before the fire.
Due to high demand of water to extinguish the fire, pressure on the system increased. In such a situation, the water level declined. This affected 20% of the water hydrant. So they dried up.
-Meanwhile, according to the New York Times, state Governor Gavin Newsom has ordered an investigation into the drying up of the water hydrant.
How is the fire being extinguished?
The help of helicopter is being taken to control the fire. 7500 firefighters have been deployed to extinguish the fire. People are being rescued and taken to safe places. Emergency shelter homes have been made in schools, colleges and community centres. Arrangements for food and drinks have been made. Emergency has been declared in the entire city. The California Administration has advised the general public not to go to the affected area. Like President Joe Biden, he has announced financial assistance for the people affected by the fire.
Economy equivalent to Ukraine’s GDP wiped out in Los Angeles, know how much loss has been incurred so far
