LA fires live updates: Winds strengthen as firefighters battle five blazes in southern California

More powerful winds could set back the recent progress made in containing blazes in the Los Angeles area that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people.

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Key Events

1. Los Angeles fire death toll rises to 25

2. Map: Fire breaks out in Riverside County

3. LA conditions 'very much like' Black Summer bushfires, NSW Rural Fire Service head says

Los Angeles fire death toll rises to 25

The death toll from the Los Angeles-area wildfires has risen to 25 people, according to an update from the LA County Medical Examiner. 

As of Tuesday afternoon local time, officials have attributed one more death to the Eaton Fire.

The Eaton Fire has killed 17 people, and the Palisades Fire has killed eight.

Reporting with AP

Watch: How this Pacific Palisades home was designed to withstand fires

A couple whose Pacific Palisades home survived the wildfire says its design could inform how buildings in disaster-prone areas are built.

Michael Kovac and Karina Maher said they built the home to be both fire-resistant and sustainable.

"Building [and] designing the house so close to nature, and knowing the history of southern California, we were acutely aware that at some point in the house's life, there would be a serious fire nearby, at the very least," Kovac said. 

In the piece below, I take a look at some other properties that managed to survive the fires, and why designing fire-resistant homes isn't a simple task in Los Angeles.

How will the disaster affect Australian insurance premiums?

Hi, can you tell me, are insurers in Australia going to adjust premiums for prevention and mitigation strategies. For eg. building homes with appropriate design, materials, topography, irrigation, firebreaks, eg. Building of stone into a hillside, half covered bunker style or other means?

– Mich

Hi Mich,

My colleague Annika Burgess took a look at this issue in an article published yesterday.

She spoke to Paula Jarzabkowski, a professor of strategic management at the University of Queensland.

Jarzabkowski said the disaster in California will "certainly make sure [insurance premiums] don't go down".

"What the cost of capital to Australian insurers will be when they next go for reinsurance, … I can't say, but it certainly won't go softer," she told Annika.

Here's a link to that story if you'd like to read further.

Fire crews make progress in containing Auto Fire

Earlier, I reported that no progress had yet been made to contain the Auto Fire in Ventura.

In good news, a Cal Fire update estimates fire crews have now contained 25 per cent of the blaze.

The department hasn't updated containment progress for the remaining fires.

Here's a refresher of where they're at:

• Palisades Fire: 17 per cent contained 
• Eaton Fire: 35 per cent contained 
• Hurst Fire: 97 per cent contained 
• Scout Fire: 0 per cent contained

Fire weather warning temporarily lowered from highest level

(Reuters: David Ryder)

Forecasters have temporarily lowered the fire weather warning from the highest level for the rest of the day.

This doesn't mean the danger has passed, though — a red flag warning is still in place.

They say winds may pick up again tomorrow morning, so the warning will go back into effect from 3am local time. 

It's currently 4pm on Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Watch: Frantic moments as couple flees their Altadena home

Scenes of a couple fleeing their Altadena home on January 7 were caught on their security cameras.

Jeffrey Ku said by the time he and his partner left, smoke in the air made it hard to breathe.

"[There were] embers flying everywhere, and the sky was bright orange," he said in a statement.

Ku said his house survived the fire and expressed his gratitude "to all the first responders and the heroes who continue to fight the fires and help those in need".

Reporting with Reuters

Map: Fire breaks out in Riverside County

 Cal Fire is now reporting a fifth fire on its active incidents list.

The Scout Fire has broken out in Riverside County, which is about 80 kilometres south-east of downtown Los Angeles.

At this stage, it is estimated to cover close to 1 hectare. 

Mayor expects Donald Trump to visit Los Angeles next week

(Reuters: Daniel Cole)

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass says she believes president-elect Donald Trump may try to visit the city sometime next week, the Associated Press reports.

Bass added the disaster wasn't limited to the city, but affected the entire US.

"The nation's second-largest city has got to succeed," she said.

In pictures: Search and rescue personnel gather in Pacific Palisades

Los Angeles Police Department assistant chief Dominic Choi said at a press conference earlier that six people remain unaccounted for.

"We're diligently trying to identify and locate these people," he said. 

Search and rescue personnel and cadaver dogs were photographed in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood today.

(Reuters: David Ryder)

(Reuters: David Ryder)

(Reuters: David Ryder)

LA conditions 'very much like' Black Summer bushfires, NSW Rural Fire Service head says

(Reuters: Alasdair Pal)

NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Rob Rogers said extremely dry conditions and strong winds have made it almost impossible to contain the fires in Los Angeles.

"It's very much like we had with 2019 and 2020 on really bad days, the fire is going to do what the fire is going to do," he said.

"All you can do is try and protect things ahead of that fire, but it's going to burn where it's going to burn, and for us to think we have an ability to stop that, we're just fooling ourselves."

Reporting with Reuters

NSW Rural Fire Service boss slams social media platforms

(Reuters: Alasdair Pal)

The head of the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) says a refusal by social media giants to give emergency services free access to data is hindering responders globally, as wildfires continued to rip through Los Angeles.

Commissioner Rob Rogers said companies including X and Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, could save lives by giving first responders back-end access to data. 

The RFS' software program Athena uses AI to predict where fires might spread.

Rogers said the program could be made more powerful by better integrating it with posts from social media users on wildfires as they start and spread.

But X and Meta have been unwilling to provide access at no cost, and Rogers said the fees involved were "well beyond our capacity to do that".

"That's something that's probably bigger than just us. I think that's an emergency service issue worldwide," he said, without providing details about the cost of API access.

Meta and X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Reporting with Reuters

Los Angeles restaurants offer free meals to first responders, evacuees

Restaurants across Los Angeles are offering free meals to first responders. 

Alessandro and Danielle Zecca, owners of Mexican-Italian restaurant Amiga Amore, have been participating in the initiative.

They told ABC News Breakfast they recognised meals were needed for firefighters and anyone who had lost their home.

“We just wanted to provide a space that they could come and recharge, regroup and, of course, get a free meal on us," Danielle Zecca said.

She said on the first day of the initiative, five restaurants were taking part but that number has since grown to at least 30.

Three arrested since Sunday on suspicion of arson

Three people have been arrested on suspicion of arson since Sunday, the Los Angeles Police Department said. 

Police say one person was using a lighter to start fires and another lit a trash can on fire.

The third person was caught lighting brush on fire.

Each of those fires were quickly extinguished. 

As of Tuesday morning, local time, police have made a total of 14 arrests related to the fires, Los Angeles Police Department assistant chief Dominic Choi said at a press conference earlier. 

"Three for curfew, one for impersonating a firefighter, one for possession of burglary tools, four for burglary, one for DUI, one for felony vandalism and three for shoplifting."

An update on the Auto Fire in Ventura

Is there any updates on the Auto Fire or is it being somewhat contained?

– John

Hi John,

According to Cal Fire's most recent update, the Auto Fire — burning in Ventura County, north of Los Angeles — is currently 0 per cent contained and has covered 56 acres.  

By comparison, the Palisades Fire has burned 23,713 acres and the Eaton Fire has covered 14,117. 

We've seen a handful of smaller fires break out during this disaster, which have since been contained, including the Sunset, Kenneth, Archer and Lidia fires.

I'll bring you any updates that come to hand.

Watch: Strong winds spark warnings of 'explosive' fire growth risk

Wind gusts of up to 115 kilometres an hour have been recorded in the San Gabriel Mountains, north of Los Angeles.

Our correspondent Kathryn Diss told ABC News Breakfast the conditions have prompted warnings of "explosive" fire growth.

Palisades Fire crews meet for morning briefing

Battling these fires has called for a veritable army of firefighters.

Here's a glance at the some of the team responding to the Palisades Fire.

(Instagram: Los Angeles Fire Department)

They were gathered earlier today for their morning operational brief.

"To the outside eye, this may not seem necessary. However, it is critical to safety as it outlines the conditions they will face today and provides their plan of action for this operational period which lasts 12 hours," the Los Angeles Fire Department wrote on Instagram.

"After the briefing, they headed out to relieve the firefighters who worked the overnight shift. This is a continuous rotational that will not stop until the fire is fully extinguished."

What role has the weather played?

Hi ABC, Maps of where the fires are located are good. Also an explanation of how the winds and weather conditions contributed to causing and fuelling the fires thanks

– Maureen

Hi Maureen,

If you'd like to read more about the weather conditions contributing to the severity of the wildfires, my colleague Jo Lauder published a helpful explanation last week.

Here's some of what she wrote:

"Sometimes called the 'devil winds', the Santa Ana winds have fuelled some of California's worst fires.

"These hot, dry blasts originate over the deserts of Utah and Nevada and blow across to southern California. Wind gusts peaked around 160kph in parts of the state during the fires, according to the National Weather Service.

"Santa Ana winds also cause the humidity to drop extremely low, drying out vegetation and adding to the dangerous fire conditions."

You can read more below.

Wind conditions in Los Angeles worsen

(Reuters: David Ryder)

The National Weather Service has warned dry winds and severely dry conditions have created a "particularly dangerous situation" today.

It said any new fires could explode in size, with the winds capable of spreading embers three to five kilometres, as well as creating fire tornadoes. 

Winds picked up to 64 kilometres an hour early Tuesday, local time in coastal and valley areas and to 80 kilometres an hour in the mountains, National Weather Service meteorologist Todd Hall said.

Gusts of up to 105 kilometres an hour are forecast to continue through to midday Wednesday.

Utilities declare drinking water unsafe due to contamination concerns

(Reuters: David Ryder)

Several utilities have declared their drinking water unsafe until testing can prove otherwise.

Toxic chemicals from fire can contaminate drinking water by penetrating damaged systems.

Filtering or boiling the water wouldn't make it safe for consumption, experts say.

Pasadena Water and Power issued a "do not drink" notice to about a third of its customers last week.

"Out of the abundance of caution, you kind of have to assume the worst," Stacie Takeguchi, chief assistant general manager for the utility, said at the time.

They lifted the notice for most of the area this week after testing cleared the water.

Reporting with AP

Welcome to our live coverage

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the Los Angeles wildfires. 

Here's where things stand this morning:

• The Palisades Fire is 17 per cent contained 
• The Eaton Fire is 35 per cent contained 
• The Hurst Fire is 97 per cent contained 

About 88,000 people remain under evacuation orders but officials warn that could be extended to an additional 84,000 if fires spread.