California wildfires: Death toll climbs to 24 with more strong winds in Los Angeles

(AP) Additional water tankers and scores of firefighters have arrived at the Los Angeles area ahead of fierce winds that were forecast to return and threaten the progress made so far on two massive infernos that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people.

On Monday, planes doused homes and hillsides with bright pink fire-retardant chemicals, while crews and fire engines were being placed near particularly vulnerable spots with dry brush. Dozens of water trucks rolled in to replenish supplies after hydrants ran dry last week when the two largest fires erupted.

Tabitha Trosen and her boyfriend said she feels like they are “teetering” on the edge with the constant fear that their neighborhood could be the next under threat.

“Our cats are ready to go, we have their carriers by the door prepped with their little stuffed animals and things like that,” Trosen said, adding that she's packed things as she thinks about what she could lose. “It’s like, how do I take care of myself, and what are the things that will ground me as a human and remind me of my background and my life and my family.”

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other officials — who have faced criticism over their initial response to fires that began last week — expressed confidence Monday that the region was ready to face the new threat with additional firefighters brought in from around the U.S., as well as Canada and Mexico.

“We’re absolutely better prepared,” LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said when asked what will be different from a week ago, when hurricane-force winds propelled multiple fires across the parched, brush-filled region that hasn’t seen rain in more than eight months.

There have been more than a dozen wildfires in Southern California since Jan. 1, mostly in the greater Los Angeles area. The latest started late Monday in a dry riverbed in Oxnard, about 55 miles (about 89 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles, and was burning in an agricultural area.

The winds are predicted to pick up starting early Tuesday and continue through midday Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. They are not expected to reach hurricane-force like last week, but they could ground firefighting aircraft, Marrone said, warning if winds reach 70 mph (112 kph), “it’s going to be very difficult to contain that fire."

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[T.R.R.Jolkien]

They mocked God at the golden globe awards show. 3 days later their celebrity community is gone. Those are the facts.

Celebrity roast I’m the common tongue

[jiha]

We are deeply concerned, and the fires have the right to defend themselves against terrorism. We call on both sides to exercise restraint... No ceasefire, no truce in Los Angeles. Let them (fires) be, for they are commanded by the Lord

[daveb]

Chief Crowley's resume in the future:
----During my tenure as chief, half of Los Angeles burned to the ground.

[AlfredYHV]

Multiple arsons after what the US had done to so many countries?

[BrokenWill]

Considering the devastation, the low death toll is pretty remarkable