Fresh evacuation orders as deadly LA wildfires expand with locals told to stay inside over smoke fears

11 January 2025, 15:33

More than 150,000 LA residents are now under strict evacuation orders as wildfires continue to rage through the city. Others are being urged to stay indoors to avoid smoke amid a health emergency.

The new evacuation orders were issued on Friday night after it emerged that the Palisades Fire in the western edge of the city started heading in a new direction.

Residents in the Brentwood neighbourhood and the foothills of the San Fernando Valley were ordered to flee their homes as the blaze barrelled towards their areas.

A mandatory evacuation order had earlier been issued covering Sunset Boulevard North to Encino Reservoir and from the 405 Freeway West to Mandeville Canyon.

At least 11 people have been killed since the deadly blazes first began tearing through the city earlier this week.

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The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) has also told students to prepare for a possible evacuation as the nearby Palisades fire continues to sweep across the region.

UCLA said in a statement, noting that an evacuation warning has been issued in a zone adjacent to the campus.

"This is NOT an evacuation alert.

"We are asking Bruins on campus to remain vigilant and be ready to evacuate, should the alert be extended to our campus," it said, referring to UCLA students by their nickname.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles County's public health authority has now declared a local health emergency, with smoke and ash from the fires sparking poor air quality. 

"It said in a statement that the fires and strong winds have "severely degraded air quality...posing immediate and long-term risks to public health".

They added that the fires have also sparked evacuations from healthcare facilities, disrupting "vital health services and resources".

Its health order also bans the use of power air blowers - including leaf blowers - as they stir up ash in the air, threatening  those with respiratory conditions, the elderly and other vulnerable groups.

Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom has called for an independent probe into water shortages which he says have "impaired" the fight against the blaze.

He wrote in a post on X: "Losing supplies from fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors."He said a "comprehensive review" was needed "to ensure this does not happen again and we have every resource available to fight these catastrophic fires".

LA mayor Mayor Karen Bass has been blasted by critics for cutting the fire department’’s budget last month. Around $17.6 million was shaved off the fire department in its 2025 budget announced last month.

LAFD Fire Chief Kristin Crowley has claimed the cuts "have adversely affected the Department's ability to maintain core operations." 

“Ultimately, loss of funding impairs the Department’s ability to mitigate wildland fires and other hazards effectively,” the fire chief wrote in a December memo. 

Prine Harry and Meghan Markle have been seen handing out food parcels to those affected by the wildfires at the Pasadena Convention Centre on Friday in surprise appearance.

The building is being used as an evacuation centre for the thousands who have been forced to flee their homes while the blaze rages on.

The couple were keen to offer up support in any way they could, the Mayor said, adding that they were "great people" with "great personalities".

"They really buoyed the spirits of the first responders," Mr Gordo said. "We visited the command post at the Rose Bowl and people were very happy to see them."