On Jan. 7, fires started to spread in Los Angeles, California. Many small ones broke out, but the most structurally damaging was the Palisades Fire, which had burned 23,448 acres as of Jan. 30, but in total, the fires have burned about 40,000 acres of California. Thousands of people are under evacuation orders and warnings, with at least 28 deaths so far.
Many families have had to evacuate and are reaching out to loved ones to update on location status and health. Multiple students in Southeast, while not directly affected by the fires, have connections to the fires in L.A. In a survey with 95 respondents, 12 people shared they know someone who has been affected directly. For example, respondent Charlotte Mar’s (10) cousin and her girlfriend had to evacuate.
“They had to evacuate their apartment. It especially affected [my cousin] because she was reminded of the fires in Santa Rosa in 2018 and 2020 when she had to evacuate her home and her aunt and uncle lost their home and a lot of their community there,” Mar said.
Many people are likely experiencing similar emotions of distress and unease. The spread of this devastation is expected to have long-term effects on Los Angeles residents.
While Mar’s cousin is safe, it’s predicted the fires will have a lingering effect on their lives.
Mar says, “They’re so widespread that I’m sure [they] absolutely know people who have lost their homes and personal belongings and loved ones, as a lot of people do. I think it’ll be a while before things truly return to normal for them and everyone.”
The damage is still spreading in L.A. as winds cause new, smaller fires to spring up. The fires are causing toxic smoke to blow over the Pacific Ocean, which according to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) contains chemicals like lead, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and asbestos.
The excessive damage has also led to the displacement of over 800 pets. Many of them have been cycled through the Pasadena Humane Society, where efforts to find their owners or get fosters and heal them are underway. There are massive efforts to rehome some of them and it’s likely there will be an influx of animals in shelters seeking safety.
Everyone knows someone connected to this disaster, even if it’s not personally. Even famous celebrities such as Britney Spears and Paris Hilton have shared that they had to evacuate their homes. Whether directly or indirectly, impact from the LA fires is felt everywhere.While it may feel surreal for people in Lincoln about 1,500 miles away, these fires definitely still affect us.
