Smoke rises in the Brentwood area amid wildfires in California
On January 13, KTLA radio reported that police in Los Angeles (California, USA) had just arrested two suspects in front of Vice President Kamala Harris’ house amid a curfew due to a serious forest fire.
The Los Angeles Police Department said they arrested two suspects in front of Ms. Harris’s house in the Brentwood residential area at about 4:30 a.m. on January 11 (local time), after receiving reports of a possible burglary.
These two people were arrested for violating curfew, because the area was under an evacuation order, but they were soon released because there was no evidence linking them to a crime.
Mrs. Harris was not home at the time of the incident. The house is normally protected by the US Secret Service, state and local police, but it is unclear if this will change due to the evacuation order.
Unprecedented damage
The National Guard is helping patrol evacuated areas, where there is a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. the next morning. Dozens of looting suspects have been arrested in the fires. At least 24 people have died, while more than 150,000 people are under evacuation orders.
The Brentwood area is increasingly threatened by the Palisades Fire, the first and largest of several wildfires burning the Los Angeles area. Strong winds returning from January 12 may increase the danger.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said the Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst fires had burned about 100 miles.2an area larger than the city of San Francisco, and has destroyed more than 12,300 structures.
Firefighters from nine other states participated in fighting the fire, using 1,354 fire trucks and 84 aircraft. More than 14,000 firefighters have been mobilized.
According to rough estimates from p AccuWeatherthese forest fires caused the greatest damage in US history, with estimated damages ranging from 135-150 billion USD.
Prisoners participate in firefighting
According to the sheet The Washington Post On January 13, more than 900 prisoners were mobilized to fight fires in Los Angeles, in the context that the state of California has a significant portion of firefighters who are in prison for minor crimes.
Detained firefighters were mobilized to fight the fire
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) said 939 “incarcerated firefighters” were participating in firefighting along with nearly 2,000 firefighters from the California Fire Department.
According to Fox 5, CDCR officials said the program is completely voluntary and eligible participants will have days reduced from their sentences.
Volunteers are also paid between $5.80-$10.24/day, depending on their skill level. In an emergency, they are paid an additional $1 an hour, according to CDCR.
