California wildfires: Death toll back to 24 after LA County retracts report
LOS ANGELES - The death toll from the recent California wildfires remains at 24 as of Tuesday, January 14.
Los Angeles County's Medical Examiner initially said 25 people died earlier in the evening, but later retracted the report after realizing that the remains they found weren't of a human.
Wit that being said, 16 of the 24 deaths are attributed to the Eaton Fire and 8 from the Palisades Fire.
The Palisades Fire
The Palisades Fire broke out on Tuesday, January 7 as parts of Southern California were hit by powerful Santa Ana winds – the strongest to hit the area in over a decade, officials said. The piercing winds not only intensified the spread of the fire, it also prevented helicopters and planes from dumping water or fire retardant onto the burning scene as it was too dangerous to fly during the first day of the massive fire.
The fire extended well over 23,000 acres in seven days, destroying homes and businesses across the Pacific Palisades and Malibu. The fire also forced evacuations across parts of LA County, including Bel-Air, Brentwood and Santa Monica.
The fire also destroyed the Pacific Palisades Charter High School.
The Eaton Fire
The Eaton Fire was first reported on Jan. 7 near Altadena and Midwick drives.
Since then, multiple people have died and at least 7,000 structures have been destroyed.
Authorities have implemented a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. for all areas that remain under mandatory evacuation orders in the Altadena area. This comes after more than 30 looting arrests were made by the LA County Sheriff's Department.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, but they were fueled by extreme drought conditions, combined with the supersized Santa Ana winds that whipped flames and embers at 100 mph – much faster than usual.
A lawsuit filed Monday claims Southern California Edison equipment sparked the Eaton Fire.
The lawsuit alleges that Southern California Edison failed to comply with essential electrical and fire safety standards, including failing to maintain power lines and overgrown vegetation.
The Source: The update on the death toll used information provided by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.