‘Apocalyptic’ Wildfires Raging Through California; 400,000 Without Power

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

LOS ANGELES, USA (Worthy News) – Massive wildfires raged through neighborhoods of Los Angeles, America’s second-largest city, and surrounding areas in the U.S. state of California late Wednesday, where tens of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes.

Authorities said four wildfires were burning in Los Angeles County, including the Pacific Palisades and Sylmar neighborhoods of Los Angeles and another near Pasadena.

Officials warned that the fires were ” zero percent contained ” as of Wednesday afternoon.

More than 70,000 residents were under evacuation orders as the Los Angelas area wildfires which threaten at least 28,000 structures, according to authorities.

Adding to the misery, more than 400,000 people were without power in Los Angeles County by Wednesday afternoon.

Santa Ana winds from the east are pushing the fires, and officials have warned that “the worst is yet to come.”

NAVY HELICOPTERS

With fires reaching apocalyptic proportions, the U.S. Department of Defense said it is deploying ten Navy helicopters with water delivery buckets to help suppress wildfires raging across southern California.

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters that the 10 Navy helicopters come in addition to the California National Guard and the Nevada Nation Guard, each readying an additional two “modular air fighting system units.”

The Navy’s helicopters with watery delivery buckets will “immediately assist with aerial suppression,” Singh said, cautioning that high winds complicate efforts.

“We can search assets, and the president has directed this department to bolster whatever California needs. But we have to work with California, and right now, we can’t even get assets up in the air because the fires are so bad and because the winds are so bad,” she added.

At President Biden’s direction, the military “will provide additional firefighting personnel and capabilities,” Singh stressed. “The federal government is working closely with the National Guard, which is deployed under the governor’s state of emergency declaration.”

However, U.S. President-elect Donald J. Trump pinned the blame for the “apocalyptic” wildfires tearing through Los Angeles County on California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom.

PROTECTING FISH

He claimed the governor “refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow, melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way.”

Trump alleged on his Truth Social media platform late Wednesday morning that the governor “wanted to protect an essentially worthless fish called a smelt, by giving it less water (it didn’t work!), but didn’t care about the people of California.”

Trump added, “Now the ultimate price is being paid.”

He made clear that soon after his January 20 inauguration as president he would “demand that this incompetent governor allow beautiful, clean, fresh water to FLOW INTO CALIFORNIA! He is the blame for this. On top of it all, no water for fire hydrants, not firefighting planes. A true disaster!”

In response, Newsom’s director of communications, Izzy Gardon, said: “We’re focused on protecting lives and battling these blazes—not playing politics.”

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