Firefighters Battle the Destructive Blaze With Reinforcements From Multiple States
On the third day of the Palisades Fire, at last, good news, CAL FIRE has announced that firefighters have finally achieved 6% containment on this destructive blaze. The fire has so far charred 19,978 Acres. President Joe Biden has also announced that the Federal Government will Cover 100% of the cost for 180 Days for California Fire Response.
More good news, on social media, the California National Guard announced that the hand crews already deployed in SoCal are being joined by additional teams gearing up to combat wildfires. Military police, helicopters, and C-130 firefighting aircraft are gearing up to assist our partners. California National Guard firefighters, aviation assets, and other support staff have joined the fight to suppress the Southern California wildfires. Additionally, resources from multiple states – including Oregon, Utah, and Nevada — are sending resources to help.
CAL FIRE’s operations chiefs on the Palisades Fire, Christian Litz, and Landon Hack described the plan to continue to contain the fire with with six different fronts to keep the fire from breaking out into other areas.
The first division was Alpha, which is the area closest to Brentwood on the east side of the fire at Sullivan and Mandeville Canyons, the second is the southeast edge with divisions Charlie, Foxtrot, Juliet, Mike, and Papa, which is the area closest to Santa Monica, Pacific Coast Highway, and the southern border of Pacific Palisades, the third is division Tango which is the western edge of the fire, close to the area of the Franklin Fire in Malibu, the fourth division Uniform which is the northwest area closest to Piuma Road, the fifth division which is division Victor is Topanga Canyon in the north, and the sixth division which is divisions Y and Z which are the northernmost area of the Pacific Palisades.
Essentially, they have surrounded the entire fire and are keeping it from expanding and working on reducing it, with the use of aircraft doing air drops and firefighters patrolling and responding to any issues.
This is the community town hall that CAL FIRE held on Thursday, January 9. You can watch it here:
The weather has been a big driver of the fire’s advance. The Santa Ana winds returned with gusts up to 40 MPH that were observed into Thursday afternoon. North to northeast winds are expected to increase with poor overnight humidity recovery. On Saturday, typical mid-January conditions are expected, on Sunday, and continuing through the middle of next week, weak to moderate Santa Ana winds are expected. There is a chance of strong winds on Tuesday. There will continue to be a high likelihood of critical fire weather conditions through next week.
The Los Angeles County and CAL FIRE Damage Assessment Teams (DINS) continue to assess and validate structures impacted by the Palisades Fire. More than 5,000 structures have been destroyed according to Fire Chief Crowley.
The Los Angeles Unified School District and Santa Monica-Malibu School District have canceled classes for all schools Friday. Residents are encouraged to avoid nonessential travel to allow firefighters plenty of room to work.
Tragically, the first death in the Palisades Fire has been confirmed and it was a resident of Malibu.
Malibu’s mayor Doug Stewart issued a statement on the death, “We are deeply saddened to learn that we have lost a member of the Malibu community during the Palisades Fire. Although the individual has not yet been identified, this tragic news weighs heavily on our hearts. On behalf of the City of Malibu, I want to express my deepest condolences to the loved ones of this person. Our community grieves with you in this moment of unimaginable loss. Please join me in keeping this individual’s family and all those affected by the fire in your thoughts and hearts.”
LAPD Chief McDonnell noted that officers were investigating a death on the 15300 block of Friends Street, but no other information is known.
All current mandatory evacuations and evacuation warnings are still in effect until further notice.
Road Closures
Follow CHP-West ValleyExternal Link to stay up-to-date on road closures for the Palisades Fire.
- Southbound Pacific Coast Highway is closed at Malibu Canyon
- Southbound Piuma Road is closed at Woodbluff Road
- Southbound Malibu Canyon is closed at Piuma Road
- Southbound Stunt Road is closed at Mulholland Drive
- Southbound Topanga Canyon Road is closed at Mulholland Drive
City of Santa Monica:
- Ocean Avenue, 7th Street, and 26th Street have all been shut down to northbound traffic into the Palisades
- I-10 westbound has been shut down at Lincoln Boulevard. All additional access to the northbound Pacific Coast Highway has been closed off
- Pacific Coast Highway is closed between Entrada Drive and Malibu Canyon Road
- Southbound Las Virgenes and Malibu Canyon are closed at Lost Hills Road is closed at Pacific Coast Highway
- Southbound Old Topanga Canyon is closed at Mulholland Drive
- Eastbound Mulholland Highway is closed at Malibu Canyon
- Pacific Coast Highway is closed at Malibu Canyon for northbound and eastbound traffic
- Malibu Road is closed at Webb Way to eastbound traffic
- Dry Canyon Cold Creek is closed at Mulholland Highway
- Cold Canyon Road at Mulholland Highway is closed to southbound traffic
- Pacific Coast Highway is closed at Leo Carillo to eastbound and westbound traffic
