Los Angeles Fires 24 Dead, 12,000 Structures Destroyed

150,000 people have been evacuated, with over 700 seeking shelter in nine facilities...

Fires across the Los Angeles area have claimed at least 24 lives, forced thousands to flee, and destroyed over 12,000 structures, burning through an area larger than San Francisco.

The cause of the fires is not known yet, but early estimates suggest they could become the most costly in U.S. history. Preliminary figures from AccuWeather estimate the damage and economic losses could range from USD 135 billion to USD 150 billion.

several densely populated neighbourhoods have been threatened and destroyed, including Pacific Palisades and Altadena.

Around 150,000 people have been evacuated, with over 700 seeking shelter in nine facilities. As of Sunday, Cal Fire reported the Palisades Fire was 11 percent contained, and the Eaton Fire was 27 percent contained.

Almost 70,000 customers in California were without power on Sunday morning with over half in Los Angeles County, according to PowerOutage.us. Officials reported significant damage to sewer, water, and power infrastructure across the region.

The National Weather Service warned that strong Santa Ana winds could soon return and issued red flag warnings for severe fire conditions through Wednesday. The winds have been largely blamed for turning the wildfires into infernos that levelled entire neighbourhoods around the city where there has been no significant rainfall in over eight months.

Thousands have fled and many have lost their homes, including Hollywood stars Billy Crystal and Mandy Moore and Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick.

Several places have destroyed by fires including worship, including a mosque, a synagogue, a Catholic parish and a half-dozen Protestant churches.