The city of California in the United States is currently under fire. The fire that spread in the US state of California has not yet been brought under control. According to various media, at least 16 people have died due to the fire. According to the BBC, 13 people are missing.

So far, the fire has spread over more than 38 thousand acres. According to officials, the fire has destroyed more than 12,000 homes and other structures. The fire has burned more than 60 square miles and displaced thousands of people, according to American officials.

According to California fire control officials, efforts are currently being made to bring the fire under control in the four main areas of the city, Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst. The largest of these fires is in the Palisades area.

The fire has spread over at least 23,600 acres in the Palisades area. Only 11 percent of the fire there has been controlled so far. The Palisades fire is also moving rapidly toward popular areas such as Brentwood, Encino and Mandeville Canyon. 

Similarly, a second major fire has spread in Eton . The fire has spread over more than 14,100 acres in Eaton. In Eaton, only 15 percent of the fire has been contained. In Kenneth, 90 percent of the fire has been contained . The fire has covered an area of ​​more than 1,000 acres. Hearst is spread over an area of ​​800 acres. The Hearst fire is 76 percent contained.

The National Weather Service has warned that Los Angeles and Ventura County will remain under a severe fire risk until Wednesday. Los Angeles is experiencing power outages due to the fire. About 35,000 homes in Los Angeles are currently without electricity . Due to the fire, the famous Hollywood area has also suffered major damage . 

How did the fire spread in California?

According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), the first fire started in Pacific Palisades, a neighborhood in Los Angeles. According to local time, the fire started at 10:30 am on Tuesday morning.

The current wildfire is said to be one of the largest in California history. However, the cause of this fire has not been discovered. Researchers are trying to find out the cause of the fire. Also, different media have been saying that there are many reasons for creating favorable conditions for the fire.

California usually gets wildfires in June and July. But this year, the coldest month of Hiwad has been a fire in January . Currently there is a continuous drought in Southern California, which is experiencing fire . It hasn't rained in months .

According to America's 'Drought Monitor', 96.65 percent of California's area was drought-free by January of last year. There was drought only in a small part. But if we look at the data until last December, by the end of last December, only 40.9 percent of California was drought-free, while the rest of the area was drought-free. 

According to a report by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), climate change has contributed to the spread of wildfires in many areas and increased the number of wildfires. Also, the Santa Ana wind (dry and hot air) is believed to have caused fires by adding more force to the drought. Done . 

flows from the interior desert region of California to the coast and beyond. It dries out the environment and increases the risk of fire. In such a situation, a cigarette butt, a vehicle or even a spark of an electric wire can cause a fire.  On Tuesday night, the wind blew up to 160 miles per hour, Daniel Ehresman, a meteorologist of "Ekkuweather" said in Aljazeera .

In addition to dry vegetation, Los Angeles also had low-lying power lines and combustibles such as wooden telephone poles. According to American media, firefighters from other US states and firefighters from other countries have also arrived in California to help control the fire.

Some parts of Hollywood have also come to a standstill due to the fire. Oscar nominations, Critics' Choice Awards and many movie premieres have been postponed. Disney has closed its headquarters . Similarly, NBC Universal has also closed the Hollywood Universal Studios theme park . Many media related to Hollywood films have also been damaged due to the fire.

Lack of water to control the fire

During the control of the fire, a big challenge was faced due to the lack of water . There was a lack of water to control the fire, especially in the Palisades area.

Three million gallon water tanks in the Palisades area were quickly emptied after the water spread at three speeds. As a result, there was a lack of water in the fire hydrants. According to the officials, the situation became complicated due to the lack of coordination between the water storage tanks and the pumping systems that send water to the highlands.

According to Janice Kinones, chief executive officer of the Los Angeles Water Department, there was a problem with water supply management due to four times more demand than usual. Similarly, it was also collected from local ponds. Local residents were also asked to turn off the water in their homes. 

Looting by hiding the chance of fire

When people are forced to leave their homes due to fires in different areas of Los Angeles, the houses that were saved from the fire were targeted by robbers . About 20 people have been detained by the police on the charge of looting houses and curfew was also imposed during the night. 

Los Angeles County Police Chief Robert Luna said the robbery was "unacceptable behavior". She also informed that the California National Guard was used to control the looting. Similarly, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass also said that the National Guard will be deployed in a non-emergency role and will ensure the safety of areas affected by the fire.

She also warned that there will be zero tolerance for those who enter other people's houses and loot property. According to initial estimates, the total damage and economic loss caused by the fire is estimated to reach 460 billion to 4130 billion. . 

California's devastating fires

'August Complex Fire' 

The August complex fire spread across Glen, Lake, Mendocino, Tehama, Trinity and Shasta counties and covered 1.1 million 32 thousand 648 acres . About 935 structures were destroyed in that fire.

In the Mendocino National Forest, several lightning strikes started in the same place. The fire lasted until mid-November. It took 87 days to fully control the fire. Since the fire was in a remote area, no one died. However, one firefighter was killed . 

'Campfire'

In 2018, the 'campfire' in the city of Paradise, California, spread over an area of ​​more than 150,000 acres. It is considered the deadliest fire in California history. 95 percent of the city was burnt in the fire.  

In this fire in November 2018, 85 people died and nearly 19,000 buildings and structures were destroyed. This fire was brought under control after 17 days.

This fire was caused by a short in the power line of the "Pacific Gas and Electric" company. had done . The fire in the company was spread after contact with dry grass and leaves by the strong wind .

'Dixie Fire'

The Dixie Fire in July 2021 spread across Butte, Lassen, Plumas, Shasta, and Tehama counties and burned 963,339 acres. The area was spread . This fire lasted for 104 days . A tree fell on the power line of Pacific Gas and Electric Company and caught fire. 

'Mendocino Complex Fire' 

The Mendocino Complex Fire in July 2018 spread across Mendocino, Lake, Colusa, and Glenn counties to a total of 459,230 acres. It took 161 days to bring the fire under control. This fire destroyed 280 structures. One firefighter died due to the collapse.