The Palisades Fire, the largest and the most deadly of the five fires raging through California might have been started by New Year’s Eve fireworks, the Washington Post reported analysing satellite imagery and then tallying them with the interviews of the residents. The Palisades Fire began in the same area where firefighters had put out a previous fire, the locals confirmed adding that the firemen were quick to respond to the New Year’s Eve fireworks while they took time to react to the Palisades Fire; even the phone lines were busy.
Overlapping evidence from satellite imagery
Washington Post tallied the satellite imagery of the New Year’s Eve fireworks with the Palisades Fire and confirmed that the origin of the smoke in the Palisades Fire overlapped with the burn scar from the New Year’s Eve fire in the Temescal Ridge in the Santa Monica Mountains.
The New Year’s Eve fire had spread across four acres and it took around four hours to contain that fire. Shortly after midnight on Jan 1, firefighters responded to this fire. The wind was light and the helicopters were able to make water drops.
Experts who analysed the satellite evidence said it’s at least conceivable that the remnants from the earlier Lachman Fire gave rise to the Palisades Fire — though the fire department ensured their mop-up operations to ensure no flare-ups. But a fire could smolder for up to 10 days before being reignited by winds.
All the fires have destroyed thousands of homes and businesses and killed at least 24 people. The Palisades Fire was 13 per cent contained by Sunday night; Eaton Fire 27 per cent, Hurst Fire 95 per cent.
While the Palisades Fire could have begun by the New Year’s Eve fireworks, the reason for the other fires is still a matter of investigation. Experts believe electrical equipment could have sparked Eaton and Hurst Fires. The Los Angeles Times reported that investigators are looking into whether a Southern California Edison electrical transmission tower was the point of origin of the Eaton fire, which has burned more than 14,000 acres in the hills near Pasadena.
