To: Wharf Rat who wrote (24976 ) 1/8/2025 7:34:40 PM From: Wharf Rat 2 RecommendationsRecommended By
Respond to Extreme Temperature Diary- Wednesday January 8th, 2025/ Main Topic: Los Angeles Infernos…The First Climate Related Tragedy of 2025 – Guy On Climate Dear Diary. Climate crisis related weather tragedies act like a set of falling dominos. All have to be in place for the final piece to fall. Current Los Angeles conflagrations are being caused because drought has returned to Southern California after a couple of years of fairly wet weather. That wet weather allowed brush to regrow after a mega five-year drought. Drought has returned to the area due to an unusual spate of dry weather lasting into this winter. New brush had been tenderized by a record hot summer into the fall. Add the final ingredient, which was a near record strong Santa Ana event, and the last domino fell. There is very little research going on to link Santa Ana wind trends with climate change. We must not blame climate change on those winds itself. What we can point to are extremely warm temperatures that are out of climatic norms and precipitation trends leading to historic Southern California fires this January. I’ve noted that many stations across the southwestern U.S. have recorded record warmth this January. Thats in top of numerous hot records set last summer and fall. Big wildfires in California in January are definitely not normal. Here is some of the latest reporting on and pictures of the Los Angeles fires from the New York Times: nytimes.com Photos and VideoPublished Jan. 7, 2025 Updated Jan. 8, 2025, 12:30 a.m. ET Multiple fires in the Los Angeles area grew with dizzying speed on Tuesday and Wednesday, and a blaze engulfed many homes in Pacific Palisades, an affluent coastal neighborhood on the city’s west side. That fire, which had consumed almost 3,000 acres by Tuesday evening, was fueled by a fierce windstorm. Another fire east of Los Angeles, close to Pasadena in Eaton Canyon, has stretched across over 10,000 acres and left at least two people dead. Other smaller fires also drew concern, including a blaze in Sylmar, in the San Fernando Valley, where officials issued evacuation orders. Extreme wildfire weather conditions were likely to continue into Wednesday afternoon. A fire in Los Angeles grew with dizzying speed on Tuesday and by the afternoon had engulfed many homes in Pacific Palisades, an affluent coastal neighborhood on the city’s west side. The fire grew from 300 acres to almost 3,000 by the evening. It was fueled by a fierce windstorm, and the worst could be yet to come: Gusts of up to 100 miles per hour, the strongest Southern California has seen in a decade, were forecast through Wednesday. The evacuation of Pacific Palisades, home to about 24,000 people and many celebrities, stalled traffic along Sunset Boulevard. Some people abandoned their vehicles and escaped on foot. The Los Angeles Fire Department said it would use a bulldozer to move about 30 abandoned vehicles. “By no stretch of the imagination are we out of the woods,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said at a news conference on Tuesday afternoon. Mark Abramson for The New York Times A resident checked on his neighbors as flames neared their homes. He tried to douse several homes with water. Apu Gomes/Getty Images The Palisades fire burned homes on the Pacific Coast Highway. Josh Edelson/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images A home ablaze as the Eaton fire ravaged the Altadena area. Philip Cheung for The New York Times Firefighters tried to save homes after the Palisade fire broke out in the Pacific Palisades section of Los Angeles, home to about 24,000 people and many celebrities. Philip Cheung for The New York Times Red skies settled over the Palisades area this week. Mark Abramson for The New York Times George Wilkins walked through Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church with a hose as the structure burned, trying to save it. Philip Cheung for The New York Times Numerous structures were damaged in the Palisades fire. For many more photos and videos hit the following link: nytimes.com
