LA County Fires – Morning Briefing – 1/9/2025

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UPDATE 2pm, 1/9/2025

The Palisades Fire is most active on the northeast corner, in the Mandeville Canyon area. Airtankers are currently running laps on a major ridge to the east of the fire to box it in from pushing farther toward Crestwood Hills, The Getty Museum, and the 405 corridor.

Webcam view looking south east from Topanga Peak at 2pm, 1/9/2025. Topanga is in the center of this image.
Red areas are the fire perimeter from 11pm on 1/8/2025. Yellow line is approximate fire perimeter midday on 1/9. The pink lines are where some of the aircraft are currently working. 2:30pm, 1/9/2025
Water-dropping helicopters are working the edge of the fire west of Topanga Canyon Road, above Fernwood – 2pm, 1/9/25
The Eaton Fire is burning actively in the Angeles National Forest. As far as we know, all of the major spread on this fire is currently in wildland areas. View from Pine Mountain webcam at 2:22pm, 1/9/2025.

 

Good morning! Here is this morning’s Lookout Livestream, with a summary of the broadcast, following.

Summary of broadcast

We provided a detailed update on the Palisades and Eaton fires in Southern California. The Palisades fire, which started three days ago, has largely stabilized, but today will bring spread in Mandeville Canyon, northwest of Brentwood, and towards Topanga. The Eaton Fire continues to burn into the Angeles National Forest, after bringing significant destruction in Altadena. The threat to Santa Monica is deemed slight, and the fires are expected to moderate as winds decrease.

Palisades Fire Overview and Initial Updates

  • Satellite imagery shows the Palisades fire’s activity, with the fire spreading slowly north, into the prevailing winds, towards Topanga.
  • Due to the recent Franklin Fire, the Palisades Fire did not have fuel to burn in Malibu, making it (Malibu) safe from the fire.
  • The fire’s perimeter and activity over the past 24 hours are examined, with specific areas of concern and containment.

Detailed Analysis of Palisades Fire Spread

  • Lookout Wildfire Analyst, Zeke Lunder, explains the fire’s spread patterns, with the fire not pushing far northward due to continuing offshore winds.
  • The fire’s current threat to Santa Monica is assessed as slight. This may change as the fire spreads north toward Mulholland Gateway Park.
  • For urbanized areas, the fire was most active in the Chautauqua Boulevard area, with some new spread towards the coast.
  • The fire’s activity around Topanga Lookout Trailhead and Saddle Peak was minor in past 24 hours. Many areas west of Topanga Canyon had minimal northward spread in past 24 hours.
  • Heat satellites show continued fire activity in steep, rugged terrain north of Saddle Peak, above Monte Nido.
  • The most active part of the Palisades fire is identified as the area between Topanga Canyon Road and Westridge Trailhead/Mandeville Canyon area.
  • The air quality is improving, and the fire’s biggest threat remains in the rough country SE of Topanga.

Eaton Fire and Satellite Imagery Insights

  • The Eaton Fire has not shown significant new spread into urbanized areas but continues to burn within its perimeter, largely in the wildland areas.
  • New satellite imagery shows heavy destruction in Altadena, with some areas of unburned homes.

Firefighting Strategies and Challenges

  • Structure burning activity continued on 1/8, but is diminishing as winds decrease.
  • Firefighting is challenging in the area east of Topanga Canyon, as the fire is well-established in multiple drainages.
  • The 2020 Bobcat Fire scar will likely keep the Eaton Fire from pushing farther eastward into the Angeles National Forest.
  • The Eaton Fire’s potential to continue burning into the Station Fire scar is considered, with the impact of fire history on fire behavior.
  • The impact of day length and nighttime temperatures on fire behavior is explained, with reduced active burning periods due to short days and cold nights.

Ember Showers and Fire Behavior

  • Zeke Lunder discusses the role of ember showers in spreading house-to-house fires.
  • The importance of maintaining homes to prevent ember intrusion is highlighted.
  • The analogy of a wooden boat is used to explain how homes can be vulnerable to embers.
  • The impact of embers on landscaping and home ignitions is explained.
  • The role of wind in spreading embers and the challenges for firefighters are discussed.

Other Active Fires

  • The Sunset Fire in Hollywood has been halted, and the Hurst Fire in Sylmar is burning in a 5-year old burn and had minimal new spread.