Santa Ana Wind Is Expected To Continue As Of Wednesday, 8,500 Officers Attempt To Put Out Los Angeles Fire

JAKARTA - Los Angeles firefighters prepared for strong winds on Monday which is expected to trigger two catastrophic forest fires that have razed the entire environment and killed about 24 people.

The gust of Santa Ana's dry winds at a speed of 45 to 70 miles per hour is expected to continue from Monday to Wednesday, according to the National Weather Agency, which issued a red flag warning "very dangerous situation".

More than 8,500 firefighters extinguished the fire from the air and land, preventing fires at both ends of Los Angeles from spreading.

However, the National Weather Agency in Los Angeles warned, "This condition is as bad as it gets," and Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told Los Angeles residents, "We're not safe yet."

Officials say the state has placed fire crews in vulnerable areas, not only in Los Angeles but also in other areas in Southern California which are also in danger of increasing fires.

Two nested forest fires occurred on Tuesday last week triggered by strong winds carrying dry air from the inland deserts.

At least 24 people have been killed in the fire since then, according to a Los Angeles County Medical Examiner report.

"We mourn the 24 innocent souls that have been lost in a forest fire in Los Angeles," said US President Joe Biden, who announced additional disaster relief for California, which includes the cost of removing debris and emergency protection measures.

The forest fires have destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 buildings, turning the entire environment into burning ash and piles of debris, leaving a terrible sight.

As of Monday morning, more than 92,000 people in Los Angeles County were under evacuation orders - down from the previous highest number of more than 150,000 - while another 89,000 faced evacuation warnings.

The Palisaades fire, which swept through the high-end community on the west side of Los Angeles, burned 23,713 hectares (96 square km), where only 14 percent were successfully cleared, a figure representing the percentage of the fire perimeter managed to be controlled by firefighters.

Meanwhile, the Eaton Fire at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains in the east of the city spent another 14,117 hectares (57 square km) with 33 percent managed to be overcome, according to a California Fire Department (Cal Fire) report.

The third fire covering an area of 799 hectares (3.2 square km) north of the city has been successfully overcome by 95 percent and three other fires in the area have been fully controlled in recent days.

Meanwhile Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said deputies found remains of human bodies every day as they searched parts of the burning Altadena, where the Eaton fire first broke out.

"This is a very gloomy task," said Luna, adding she expected the confirmed death toll to rise in the next few days.

Separately, California Governor Gavin Newsom said the fire this time could be classified as the most devastating natural disaster in US history. It has become the most expensive forest fire in terms of insured losses.

Initial forecaster AccuWeather's estimated total economic damage and losses of 135 billion US dollars to 150 billion US dollars would be lower than the estimated loss of $225 billion due to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005.