LA fires: Data and videos reveal scale of ‘most destructive’ blazes in modern US history
The fires that have been raging in Los Angeles County this week may be the “most destructive” in modern US history.
In just three days, the blazes have covered tens of thousands of acres of land and could potentially have an economic impact of up to $150bn (£123bn), according to private forecaster Accuweather.
Sky News has used a combination of open-source techniques, data analysis, satellite imagery and social media footage to analyse how and why the fires started, and work out the estimated economic and environmental cost.
More than 1,000 structures have been damaged so far, local officials have estimated. The real figure is likely to be much higher.
“In fact, it’s likely that perhaps 15,000 or even more structures have been destroyed,” said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at Accuweather.
These include some of the country’s most expensive real estate, as well as critical infrastructure.
Beachfront properties in Malibu were destroyed by the Palisades fire. Pic: PA
Accuweather has estimated the fires could have a total damage and economic loss of between $135bn and $150bn.
“It’s clear this is going to be the most destructive wildfire in California history, and likely the most destructive wildfire in modern US history,” said Mr Porter.
“That is our estimate based upon what has occurred thus far, plus some considerations for the near-term impacts of the fires,” he added.
The calculations were made using a wide variety of data inputs, from property damage and evacuation efforts, to the longer-term negative impacts from job and wage losses as well as a decline in tourism to the area.
The Palisades fire, which has burned at least 20,000 acres of land, has been the biggest so far.
Sentinel satellite imagery of the Pacific Palisades from space, taken around 15 minutes after the Palisades fire was first reported. The red indicates the area of land that had already burned. Pic: Sentinel Hub
Satellite imagery and social media videos indicate the fire was first visible in the area around Skull Rock, part of a 4.5 mile hiking trail, northeast of the upscale Pacific Palisades neighbourhood.
These videos were taken by hikers on the route at around 10.30am on Tuesday 7 January, when the fire began spreading.
At about the same time, this footage of a plane landing at Los Angeles International Airport was captured. A growing cloud of smoke is visible in the hills in the background – the same area where the hikers filmed their videos.
The area’s high winds and dry weather accelerated the speed that the fire has spread. By Tuesday night, Eaton fire sparked in a forested area north of downtown LA, and Hurst fire broke out in Sylmar, a suburban neighbourhood north of San Fernando, after a brush fire.
These images from NASA’s Black Marble tool that detects light sources on the ground show how much the Palisades and Eaton fires grew in less than 24 hours.
On Tuesday, the Palisades fire had covered 772 acres. At the time of publication of Friday, the fire had grown to cover nearly 20,500 acres, some 26.5 times its initial size.
The Palisades fire was the first to spark, but others erupted over the following days.
At around 1pm on Wednesday afternoon, the Lidia fire was first reported in Acton, next to the Angeles National Forest north of LA. Smaller than the others, firefighters managed to contain the blaze by 75% on Friday.
On Thursday, the Kenneth fire was reported at 2.40pm local time, according to Ventura County Fire Department, near a place called Victory Trailhead at the border of Ventura and Los Angeles counties.
This footage from a fire-monitoring camera in Simi Valley shows plumes of smoke billowing from the Kenneth fire.
Sky News analysed infrared satellite imagery to show how these fires grew all across LA.
The largest fires are still far from being contained, and have prompted thousands of residents to flee their homes as officials continued to keep large areas under evacuation orders. It’s unclear when they’ll be able to return.
“This is a tremendous loss that is going to result in many people and businesses needing a lot of help, as they begin the very slow process of putting their lives back together and rebuilding,” said Mr Porter.
“This is going to be an event that is going to likely take some people and businesses, perhaps a decade to recover from this fully.”
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
A woman brought in for cremation at a Thai temple was found alive in her coffin.
The 65-year-old had been taken to Wat Rat Prakhong Tham, a Buddhist temple on the outskirts of Bangkok, after she appeared to stop breathing two days earlier.
Her family had travelled hundreds of miles with her body in the coffin and were preparing for her to be cremated.
However, moments before the service began a shocked temple manager, Pairat Soodthoop, said he heard a faint knock coming from inside the coffin.
Ambulance workers lift the woman in her coffin. Pic: AP
“I was a bit surprised, so I asked them to open the coffin, and everyone was startled,” he said.
“I saw her opening her eyes slightly and knocking on the side of the coffin. She must have been knocking for quite some time.”
The cremation was due to be live-streamed by the temple.
Thairath, the nation’s best-selling newspaper, named the woman in question as Chonthirat Sakulkoo, and said she was brought in by her brother, Mongkol Sakulkoo.
The brother said she had been bedridden for about two years before her health deteriorated further and she became unresponsive, appearing to have stopped breathing, according to Mr Soodthoop
The woman in her coffin. Pic: AP
So, the brother placed her in a coffin and drove her 300 miles (500km) from their home in Phitsanulok province, in the north of the country, to the capital, Bangkok.
The Bangkok Post reported that the woman’s brother had been told by local officials that his sister had died.
The woman had wished to donate her organs to a hospital in the Thai capital, but her brother was turned away as he did not have the relevant paperwork.
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Instead, he went to the temple, which offers a free cremation service.
After the woman was discovered alive she was assessed and sent to Bang Yai Hospital, Thairath reported, where she was treated for hypoglycemia, before being released back to her brother.
The woman in her coffin. Pic: AP
Asked how he felt to learn that his sister is still alive, Mr Sakulkoo said he was indifferent, according to the newspaper.
Mr Soodthoop, said the temple would cover her medical expenses.
Flights have been cancelled over ash clouds from Hayli Gubbi, a long-dormant volcano in Ethiopia, erupted for the first time in recorded history.
Plumes from the volcano pushed across the Red Sea through Oman and Yemen into India on Monday evening, leading airlines Air India and Akasa Air to cancel some flights.
Air India cancelled 11 flights, and Akasa scrapped flights to destinations such as Jeddah, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi, while carrier IndiGo said on social media that it was monitoring the situation “in coordination with international aviation bodies”.
The India Meteorological Department said that ash clouds from Hayli Gubbi, northern Ethiopia, are moving towards China, and are expected to clear Indian skies by 7.30pm (2pm in the UK).
It comes after the Ethiopian volcano erupted for the first time in recorded history on Sunday morning, leaving the neighbouring village of Afdera covered in dust.
No eruptions were ever recorded at Hayli Gubbi until Sunday. Pic: Afar Government/AP
Pic: Afar Government/AP
The eruption sent ash plumes up to 8.7 miles (14km) high, according to the Reuters news agency.
Mohammed Seid, a local administrator, told the Associated Press at the time that there were no casualties but that it could cause issues for livestock herders.
“While no human lives and livestock have been lost so far, many villages have been covered in ash and as a result their animals have little to eat,” he added.
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Ahmed Abdela, a local resident, also told the news agency that “it felt like a sudden bomb had been thrown with smoke and ash”.
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy are set to hold talks over the Ukraine peace plan.
US and Ukrainian officials have held discussions in Geneva about a controversial 28-point proposal drawn up by America and Russia, which has since been countered by an amended deal drawn up by Kyiv’s European allies.
The White House said there were still a “couple of points of disagreement” as of Monday night, but spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said there was a “sense of urgency” to strike an agreement.
“The president wants to see this deal come together, and to see this war end,” she added.
Mr Zelenskyy echoed that message, saying “there is still work for all of us to do to finalise the document”.
“We must do everything with dignity,” he said in his nightly video address, adding: “The sensitive issues, the most delicate points, I will discuss with President Trump.”
Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters at the White House. Pic: AP
It comes after Mr Trump, who had accused Ukraine of not being grateful enough for US military support while the Geneva talks were under way, suggested the process could be moving in the right direction.
He had earlier given Kyiv until Thursday to agree to the plan, but US Secretary of State Marco Rubio downplayed the deadline, saying officials could keep negotiating.
Moscow, however, has already signalled its opposition to the European version of the peace plan.
It would halt fighting at present front lines, leaving discussions of territory for later, and also include a NATO-style US security guarantee for Ukraine.
Read more:
Trump’s 28-point peace plan in full…
…and Europe’s 28-point counterproposal
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Russian drones devastate Kharkiv
The talks in Geneva, Switzerland, had begun with Mr Rubio denying the original plan was written by Russia.
It appeared to include a number of longstanding Kremlin demands that have proved impossible for Kyiv, including sacrificing territory Russian forces have not even seized since the war began.
Ms Leavitt has also insisted the US is not favouring the Russians.
Ukrainian troops fire near the frontline town of Pokrovsk. Pic: Reuters
Starmer to lead talks of Ukraine’s allies
Ukraine’s allies in the so-called “coalition of the willing” will hold a virtual meeting today, chaired by Sir Keir Starmer.
The British prime minister said the alliance was focused on achieving a “just and lasting peace”.
It “matters for all of us, because the conflict in Ukraine has had a direct impact here in the UK”, he added.
Russia and Ukraine report overnight attacks
The talks will begin hours after the governor of Russia’s Rostov region reported three people had been killed and 10 more injured in a Ukrainian attack overnight.
The Russian defence ministry said 249 Ukrainian drones were downed over Russian regions in total.
Meanwhile, Russian drone strikes in Kyiv left at least two dead and triggered fires on residential buildings – forcing evacuations, and leaving several people injured.
Drone strikes rocked Kyiv in the early hours of Tuesday. Pic: Ukrainian emergency services/Telegram
The war was also a topic of discussion in a call between Mr Trump and China’s Xi Jinping on Monday.
Mr Xi urged “all parties” in the conflict to “reduce differences”, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua.
He reiterated that China supported all efforts conducive to peace.
China has remained a consistent ally of Russia throughout its invasion of Ukraine, and is the top buyer of Russian oil, along with India.
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