California wildfires

At the time of writing, the wildfires that are breaking out over southern California have destroyed thousands of homes, forced over 130,000 people to evacuate and killed at least five people. The Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires are already the most destructive in the history of the nation’s second-largest city, with all three continuing to burn with little, if any, containment so far and another fire breaking out in the city on Thursday evening.



The Palisades fire, in particular, has a very personal connection to this author. On 23 October 1978, a fire broke out at 9.41 am near Mulholland Drive and the 405 Freeway in the Santa Monica Mountains. Stoked by Santa Ana winds and very hot, dry conditions, within a few minutes a large brush fire started moving westward. Fortunately, our Mandeville Canyon house was spared, only to fall prey to the ensuing floods and the resultant mudslides. Mud flowed down the canyon, filled up the pool and seeped into the house.

The Palisades fire update on 12 January 2025 showed Santa Monica public safety personnel continuing to monitor conditions overnight, with a close eye on fire activity in Mandeville Canyon. Winds are expected to continue today. Current mandatory evacuation orders and warnings remain in place. The city will continue to monitor weather and fire conditions and provide regular updates.

Critical fire weather remains with low humidity and gusty winds. The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning, which is in effect through to Wednesday 15 January. Gusts could reach up to 30 mph in Santa Monica and up to 50-75 mph in the mountain areas where the Palisades fire is still actively burning.

A curfew is in effect from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am in all areas under a mandatory evacuation order and evacuation warning. More than 5300 structures have been destroyed in the fire that started on the morning of Tuesday 7 January in the Pacific Palisades. The community of about 23,000 people is nestled between the Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It is about five miles northwest of Santa Monica and ten miles east of Malibu, just off the Pacific Coast Highway.

We have been monitoring the spread of this fire. Our daughter lives in Santa Monica, perilously close to the western boundary of the fire. Continued high winds could require them to abandon their apartment.

The Palisades Fire, which has burned 23,713 sq ml, has grown to 68% containment as of Sunday. The calm wind activity has allowed for minimal fire behaviour as firefighters continue to put out hot spots. My daughter’s home came within two miles of the fire but is now considered to be safe.

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