LOS ANGELES (dpa-AFX) – At least 16 people have died in the devastating fires in Los Angeles. So far, the coroner’s office was aware of eleven deaths – on Saturday the authority expanded the list to include five more victims. The second largest city in the USA fears even more fires in the next few days due to new winds. Meanwhile, calls for a visit and support for the future US President Donald Trump are increasing.
The fatalities
It is still unclear how many people in total died in the flames. It was not possible for the emergency services to reach all areas – the danger posed by the fire disaster in the region on the US West Coast in California is too great.
The coroners attributed the five new confirmed deaths to the second largest fire, the Eaton Fire, near Pasadena. In total, at least eleven people have now died in the area. In the even larger “Palisades Fire” in the Palisades district, there were five as before.
More than 12,300 buildings are destroyed or damaged, according to Cal Fire. Since Tuesday, almost 155 square kilometers of land have gone up in flames – that’s about one and a half times the area of the island of Sylt. Los Angeles and the region are used to fires, but not on this massive scale.
Letters to Trump
Kathryn Barger from Los Angeles County called on Trump to get an idea of the immense damage. On the X platform she posted a letter to the Republican who will take over from President Joe Biden on January 20th. Barger, who is also a Republican, also wrote in the invitation with a view to the reconstruction in and around Los Angeles in the next few years that she looked forward to working with the new administration. She asked Trump to stand by the people. She referred to a visit during his previous term in office, when Los Angeles was also struggling with fires.
The Democratic governor of the state of California, Gavin Newsom, had previously sent a letter inviting the future US president to personally see the extent of the fires. Trump had attributed responsibility for the extent of the fires to Newsom – he criticized, among other things, his water conservation measures. Newsom countered that human tragedies should not be politicized.
Meanwhile, the White House announced on Platform X that US President Biden had discussed the current situation with officials. His team also informs him how federal funds can help and how additional support can be given to survivors.
Usury, fraud and looting
The devastating fires in California aren’t the only problem authorities are seeing. California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned of price gouging, fraud and looting. Experience has shown that in emergency situations like this, malicious actors appear “who try to use the trauma and chaos of such moments for their own advantage,” said Bonta and promised to take rigorous action against it.
“We have seen businesses and landlords take advantage of increased demand during emergencies to drive up prices for essential goods and services such as gas and water, batteries, first aid supplies, building materials and accommodation, including hotels and short-term rentals drift,” he complained. This is illegal and will be punished.
Authorities are also currently on the lookout for fraudsters posing as charities and falsely claiming to be raising money for victims of the fire disaster.
Help from Mexico
Meanwhile, the USA is getting help from abroad to fight the fire. Mexico sent firefighters to California. The helpers from the neighboring country landed by plane, Governor Newsom announced on Platform X. They will therefore join the more than 14,000 emergency services on site. California is eternally grateful for the support. It had already been announced beforehand that Canada was sending help./rin/DP/mis
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