Kumar Bahukhandi
Fire wreaked havoc in Los Angeles, America. (Photo-Social Media)
Los Angeles, a posh area of America, has been burning for the past 6 days. The fire spreading from the forests is wreaking havoc in residential areas. How dangerous this fire is can be gauged from the fact that it has engulfed about 40 thousand acres of land in the area.
Los Angeles, the posh area of America, has been burning for the last 6 days. The fire that spread from the forests is creating havoc in residential areas. How dangerous this fire is can be gauged from the fact that it has engulfed about 40 thousand acres of land in the area. More than 12 thousand buildings have been burnt to ashes. This also includes the houses of many famous personalities. The Los Angeles area is famous for the residence of cinema stars. The prices of houses here are sky high.
The most expensive tragedy in the history of America
The city of Los Angeles, located in Southern California, is the center of the country’s film and television industry. So far, 16 people have died due to the fire that spread in this area, but on searching all the newspapers and websites of America, it is known that this figure is only preliminary. Many people are missing, about 2 lakh people have had to be displaced due to this terrible fire. At the same time, more than 1.5 lakh people have been asked to be on alert mode to leave their homes at any time.
Loss more than the budget of many states of India
According to the data of various US agencies, the fire in Los Angeles could be the most dangerous fire in the history of America. According to the report, this fire could cause a loss of $135 billion to $150 billion (11 to 13 lakh crores). At the same time, among the properties destroyed, there is property worth $8 billion that can come under the scope of insurance.
If we understand this loss in the context of India, then it is equal to the budget of UP-Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi. Actually, the budget of UP is Rs 7 lakh crore, while the total budget of Bihar is about Rs 3 lakh crore, while the budget of Madhya Pradesh was also more than 3 lakh crore. The budget of the capital Delhi for the year 2024 was about Rs 76 thousand crore. If the budgets of these states are combined, then America is expected to suffer this much loss in the Los Angeles fire.
In which areas of Los Angeles the fire broke out
According to reports, this fire has spread in the worst way in about 6 areas of Los Angeles. Its maximum effect is being seen in Palisades.
Most destruction in Palisades
The Palisades area of Los Angeles is said to be the most affected by this fire. This area had never seen such destruction. The fire started spreading here on Tuesday. The havoc of fire has been seen on about 21 thousand acres of land in this area. The area of Pacific Palisades, which is considered posh, was also included in this. Talking about the current situation, only about 15 percent of the fire in the affected area has been extinguished so far.
Destruction seen in Hurst too
It is being told that fire broke out in this area on Tuesday itself. It rapidly engulfed 775 acres of land here. However, the good thing is that about 75 percent of the affected area of this area has been brought under control.
Eaton is the second most affected area
Eaton, located in the northern area of Los Angeles, is the second most affected area by this fire. In terms of area, the fire spread over 14 thousand acres of land here. But till now less than 10 percent of the area has been brought under control.
Destruction also in Lydia, Kenneth and Archer
Apart from this, devastation has also been seen in Lydia, Cath and Archer areas of this city. Lydia is an area towards the north of Los Angeles and is spread over 100 acres, however, most of the area here has been brought under control. At the same time, the initial incident of fire in Kenneth area, situated near the border of Vertura County, happened on Thursday. The fire has spread over one thousand acres here. At the same time, the fire started in Archer area on Friday and moved towards Meadowlark and Granada Hills area. At the same time, the fire in Sunset, Woodley and Olivas was brought under control earlier.
Why did the fire break out in this area?
However, investigations are still on to find out how such a huge fire broke out. But reports from the US suggest that strong winds and dry weather are being blamed for this. At the same time, some experts are blaming climate change for this terrible fire. They argue that climate change, including increasing heat, prolonged drought and dry atmosphere in the area, are the main reasons for the danger of forest fires.
California is particularly vulnerable due to the weather being very hot and lack of rain in recent months. In the US, the fire season in Southern California is usually considered to be from May to October. But the state’s governor Gavin Newsom has already said that fire has become a problem throughout the year.
According to an estimate, 42 lakh square kilometers of land in the world has been destroyed since 1990. Most of this is in parts of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. At the same time, in California too, forest areas have been cut down and people have been settled there. This has also increased this problem a lot.
Why are Santa Ana winds being held responsible?
Santa Ana winds are also being held responsible for the outbreak of such a large-scale fire. These winds move from the land towards the coast. Santa Ana winds blow when high pressure forms over the Great Basin and the pressure is low on the coast of California. Usually their speed is 95-135 kilometers per hour but sometimes it exceeds 165 km per hour. These winds blow several times a year. But when these winds combine with forest fires, there is massive destruction.
Were the arrangements to deal with the fire inadequate?
Although incidents of forest fires keep coming up in Southern California between May and October. But this time the fire that broke out on such a large scale has also raised many questions. Questions are also being raised whether there was preparation to deal with such a big fire in Los Angeles? Actually, many reports came out which said that the firefighters had a shortage of water to extinguish the fire. Trump also targeted the current government regarding this.
No special preparation was seen in the high altitude areas. Many types of shortcomings were also seen while evacuating people safely, due to which questions are being raised there. At the same time, according to the report of Los Angeles Times, many experts had already warned that a disaster could happen in this area at any time but no attention was paid to it. At the same time, training is also provided to the people living in this area to avoid fire. But according to the information, the people there did not take it seriously.
The effect of this ‘fire’ will be seen for a long time
Efforts to extinguish this fire are continuing. Experts say that if the wind speed reduces, then it can be controlled in the next two to three days. But if the winds continue to blow at high speed, then it may take a lot of time. At the same time, there has been no rain in the area for a week. However, there is no doubt that this fire has caused long-term pain to Los Angeles.
This terrible fire has increased pollution in the area on a large scale. People have been forbidden to even drink water from the tap. It has been said that they should consume only bottled water. There is a fear that this fire has contaminated clean water on a large scale. Thousands of people’s homes have been destroyed. Buildings of many celebrities and many big establishments have also been damaged.
Large scale damage to animals and vegetation
Many pictures and videos are going viral on social media in which wild animals are seen running away
Many people have also left their pets helpless in the same fire. However, no official figures have been revealed as to how many animals were affected by this fire. But a user claimed on Instagram that thousands of people have left their pets there.
When a fire broke out in Woolsey area of California in 2018, the fire spread over more than 10 thousand acres of land. Reports show that it shook the ecosystem of the affected forest area. Many vegetation was reduced to ashes. The number of lions was affected on a large scale. At the same time, many animals left this area forever.
When did big fires break out in the history of America
A big fire broke out in the year 1910 in the Montana area of America. Its effect was seen on about 30 lakh acres of land. 87 people lost their lives in this. Earlier in 1898, fire broke out in North Carolina and South Carolina, which affected 3 lakh acres of land.
In 2004, a fire broke out in Alaska, which engulfed about 13 lakh acres of land in the area. In 1940 itself, a fire in Alaska destroyed 12 lakh acres of land. It is known as Rabi Fire.
In February 2024, a fire broke out in Texas, which damaged more than 10 lakh acres of land. It is known as Smokehouse Creek Fire. In 2020, a fire in California itself affected more than 10 lakh acres of land. At the same time, in 2018 itself, a fire broke out in California, which destroyed property worth crores.
