An update on the fires: So far 24 people are known to have died in the fires burning in and around Los Angeles, while at least 16 people remain missing. Over 38,000 acres have burned, more than two and a half times the size of Manhattan. Though the winds calmed for a portion of the weekend, they are expected to pick up again this week, making it even harder to contain the Palisades and Eaton fires, which are 13 percent and 27 percent contained, respectively. Meteorologists predict that the winds will recede by Thursday, but fire crews continue to struggle to get the blazes under control. The water system is still struggling to keep up with demand.
In the Pacific Palisades, "water is collected in a reservoir that pumps into three high-elevation storage tanks, each with a capacity of about one million gallons," notes The New York Times. "Water then flows by gravity into homes and fire hydrants." But the storage tanks were depleted rather quickly, given the scale of the disaster, and the extreme winds have repeatedly prevented aerial drops by helicopter or plane.
