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View Winners → Fire Jan 11, 2025
A crew hoses down the smoldering remains of a building in Altadena. | Photo courtesy of Cal Fire_Official/Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)
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Firefighters on Saturday achieved 15% containment of the deadly Eaton Fire, which has burned 14,117 acres in the northwestern San Gabriel Valley and killed at least six people.
Santa Ana winds reduced slightly in much of the Southern California region overnight — a help to firefighters — but southeasterly winds were expected to increase later Saturday into Sunday with gusts up to 30 mph, then a stronger offshore wind event likely between Monday night and Wednesday with gusts of 40 to 60 mph.
“The fire remained active overnight and is burning in an area with steep inaccessible terrain and critically dry vegetation,” Cal Fire reported. “There is still a substantial amount of fire line to construct, including around communities. Minimal growth was observed, and resources continued to construct and improve fire line, as well as address public calls for service.
“Evacuation orders remain in place for the affected cities due to continued fire activity, numerous downed trees, downed power lines, gas leaks and power outages,” fire officials said.
Damage assessment teams verified 972 structures were destroyed in the fire, many of them residences, and another 98 were damaged, Cal Fire reported Saturday. Those totals were expected to increase considerably, and nearly 40,000 structures were threatened.
“Aerial imagery overlays show approximately 7,081 structures may have been damaged or destroyed,” according to Cal Fire. The verified number of structures damaged and destroyed “will be updated with validated information as it becomes available.”
An evacuation center was established at the Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St. The Pasadena Humane Society is on-site to accept small pets for boarding.
Small animals were also being accepted at Baldwin Park Animal Care Center, 4275 Elton St., and large animals were accepted at Industry Hills Expo Center, 16200 Temple Ave. in the city of Industry.
The city of Arcadia announced Friday an evacuation order for residents south of Elkins Avenue was downgraded to a warning. Residents north of Elkins were still under an evacuation order. Arcadia evacuation info is available at arcadiaca.gov/news_detail_T41_R456.php.
For updated information on evacuations and other fire-related information, visit fire.ca.gov/incidents/2025/1/7/eaton-fire.
Six people died as a result of the Eaton Fire, Los Angeles County Assistant Sheriff Myron Johnson said Friday. The LA County Medical Examiner Department confirmed Friday that it was investigating six deaths from the Eaton Fire zone, and five from the Palisades Fire.
The city of Pasadena an other authorities have issued warnings indicating that tap water in evacuation zones is not safe to drink.
Personnel fighting the Eaton Fire totaled 2,832 Saturday.
The fire was reported at about 6:20 p.m. Tuesday in the area of Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive in the hills above Altadena during a hurricane-force Santa Ana windstorm, according to Cal Fire. The cause of the fire under investigation.
A curfew was in effect nightly from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in the mandatory evacuation zones. Only firefighters, law enforcement and utility workers are permitted to be in those areas.
LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said Thursday anyone caught looting in the fire zones would be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Authorities had arrested 20 alleged looters in fire areas, Luna told reporters.
On Friday Johnson said that since Thursday there have been 18 arrests — 15 at the Eaton Fire and three in Pacific Palisades, where the fire has consumed over 22,000 acres and was 11% contained Saturday.
The Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center was among the buildings destroyed in the fire. The LA County Department of Parks and Recreation reported that the Eaton Canyon Nature Center, Farnsworth Park’s Davies Community Center, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Altadena Golf Course Club House and adjacent buildings were destroyed. The blaze also consumed The Bunny Museum in Altadena.
As a precaution, the entire Angeles National Forest was closed through at least Jan. 15.
The U.S. Forest Service, LA County Fire Department, Pasadena Fire Department, Arcadia Fire Department, Sierra Madre Fire Department, Pasadena Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department were working under a unified command.
The fire prompted school districts in Glendale, Burbank, Pasadena, Alhambra, South Pasadena, San Marino, La Cañada, Arcadia and Monrovia to cancel classes for the week, as did Pasadena City College.
Santa Anita Park in Arcadia canceled racing this weekend due to the wildfires in the county. Track and city officials said the facility was being used to support relief efforts, including a large charity drop-off that moved Friday afternoon from the Rose Bowl to Santa Anita Park’s south parking lot.
Southern California Edison is using the entire north parking lot as its base camp to restore power to those in the affected areas, and track officials are working with other response organizations in need of space.
