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Winds that have fueled wildfires in the US city of Los Angeles are expected to pick up again in the early hours of Wednesday – after the 25th death from the massive week-long outbreak was confirmed.
Forecasters have again identified an area of ”extreme fire danger”, highlighting the level of risk in a region north-west of the city centre.
An expected increase in wind speeds threatens to further fan the remaining four fires, which firefighters have made further progress on in several days of calmer conditions.
There are hopes of another drop in wind speeds after Wednesday – but officials have stressed the need for rain to help fire crews in their battle.
The 25th death was confirmed by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office. Thirteen other people remain missing.
Most of the victims have died in the Eaton fire, which has burned more than 14,000 acres north of the city, but is now 35 percent contained by firefighters.
Further west, the larger Palisades Fire has burned more than 23,000 acres and is now 18 percent contained. Two smaller fires also continue to burn.
Some of the victims of the Eaton fire have already been allowed to return to their homes, although officials say they do not have a firm date for repopulating the Palisades area, an upscale area ravaged by the fire that gave its name.
As a result, tens of thousands of people are still under evacuation orders – where a nighttime curfew also applies – and thousands of homes have been destroyed in one of the costliest natural disasters in American history.
On Tuesday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass described the scenes as “unimaginable,” vowing to exercise her executive powers to prompt a swift recovery effort.
Outlining other measures to help local residents, another official, the Los Angeles County Supervisor, said an emergency declaration would be issued to prevent alleged price increases by Los Angeles landlords amid the crisis.
The critical conditions on Wednesday were due to the impact of moderate to locally strong Santa Ana winds combined with very low humidity, BBC forecaster Sarah Keith-Lucas said.
Winds are expected to peak again at 0300 local time (1100 GMT) for a twelve-hour period, according to the local office of the National Weather Service (NWS). Gusts could reach 50 mph (80 km/h).
Compared to last week’s conditions, winds are “weaker but still strong,” the NWS warned.
For this reason, areas northwest of Los Angeles — including Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks — are considered particularly dangerous.
But conditions are forecast to improve later Thursday and into Friday. Despite the shift in winds, no rain is forecast for at least next week, BBC forecaster Sarah Keith-Lucas added. And Santa Ana winds, which have been blamed for fueling the fires, could develop again starting Sunday.
The fire chief for the city of Pasadena reiterated the need for rainfall.
There hasn’t been “real rain in Southern California” for more than 250 days, Chad Augustine told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
On Wednesday, his firefighters will be “on guard, ready to make sure we hold our containment lines and we don’t burn any more structures,” Mr. Augustine added.
