【中美创新时报克2025 年 1 月 12 日编译讯】（记者温友平编译）消防员周日奋力扑灭野火，这场大火已摧毁了洛杉矶地区数千所房屋，造成 24 人死亡，天气预报员再次警告本周强风回归，天气危险。至少有 16 人失踪，当局表示，这一数字预计还会上升。美联社记者里斯托弗·韦伯和霍莉·拉姆对此作了下述报道。
国家气象局发布了严重火灾状况的红旗警告，持续风速为 50 英里/小时（80 公里/小时），山区阵风达到 70 英里/小时（113 公里/小时）。气象局气象学家里奇·汤普森说，最危险的一天将是星期二。
“圣安娜风非常强劲，空气非常干燥，灌木丛仍然非常干燥，因此我们仍然面临非常严峻的火灾天气条件，”汤普森在周六晚上的社区会议上说道。
洛杉矶县消防局局长安东尼·C·马罗内表示，另有 70 辆洒水车抵达，帮助消防员扑灭因新一轮阵风而蔓延的火焰。“我们已经为即将到来的大风做好了准备，”马罗内说道。官员们表示，周日飞机投下的阻燃剂将作为山坡上的屏障。
洛杉矶的小火灾如何每小时变成一场大火
上周引发的野火演变成一场大火，夷平了整个城市周围的整个街区，而那里已经八个多月没有出现过明显降雨。
洛杉矶县警长罗伯特·卢纳表示，伊顿火灾区有 12 人失踪，帕利塞兹火灾有 4 人失踪。卢纳补充说，周日早上可能还会收到“数十份”报告，调查人员正在核实是否有失踪人员在死者之中。他说，失踪人员中没有儿童。
与此同时，周末死亡人数上升至 24 人。洛杉矶县验尸官办公室在周日晚上的一份声明中表示，其中 8 人死于帕利塞兹大火，16 人死于伊顿大火。
官员们表示，他们预计这一数字还会增加，因为携带尸体犬的团队会在夷为平地的社区进行系统性的网格搜索。当局已经建立了一个中心，人们可以在那里报告失踪情况。
官员们还在建立一个在线数据库，让撤离的居民查看他们的房屋是否被损坏或摧毁。与此同时，洛杉矶市消防局局长克里斯汀·克劳利敦促人们远离被烧焦的社区。
“帕利塞兹地区仍有活火，对公众来说极其危险，”克劳利在周日上午的简报会上说。 “没有电，没有水，煤气管道破裂，建筑物也不稳定。”
官员警告说，火山灰中可能含有铅、砷、石棉和其他有害物质。
卢纳说，洛杉矶县仍有约 15 万人处于疏散令之下，超过 700 名居民在 9 个避难所避难。官员表示，帕利塞兹地区的大部分命令不太可能在周三晚上红旗警告到期前解除。
马罗内说：“请放心，周四一早我们就会开始讨论重新安置居民的问题。”
截至周日上午，加州消防局报告称，帕利塞兹、伊顿、肯尼斯和赫斯特大火已经吞噬了超过 62 平方英里（160 平方公里）的土地，面积比旧金山还大。帕利塞兹大火的控制率为 11%，伊顿大火的控制率为 27%。这两场大火共吞噬了 59 平方英里（近 153 平方公里）的土地。
加州和其他九个州的消防队参与了持续的救援行动，其中包括近 1,400 辆消防车、84 架飞机和超过 14,000 名人员，包括刚从墨西哥抵达的消防员。
奋力拯救公共和私人区域
洛杉矶县消防局事故报告称，预计周日伊顿大火将“继续闷烧和蔓延”，火势将小幅增长。该地区的大部分疏散命令已解除。
经过周六的激烈战斗，消防员成功扑灭了曼德维尔峡谷的火焰，曼德维尔峡谷是阿诺德施瓦辛格和其他名人的故乡，靠近海岸不远的太平洋帕利塞德，大火向下坡蔓延时，直升机俯冲下来，向那里喷水。
大火蔓延到灌木丛覆盖的山坡，还一度威胁要越过 405 号州际公路，蔓延到好莱坞山和圣费尔南多谷人口稠密的地区。
抢劫者被捕
抢劫仍然是一个令人担忧的问题，随着破坏的加剧，当局报告的逮捕人数也越来越多。洛杉矶警察局队长迈克尔·洛伦兹表示，最近几天已有 7 人被捕，其中两名嫌疑人“假扮消防员进出房屋”。
当被问及究竟逮捕了多少抢劫者时，洛伦兹说他无法给出确切的数字，但警察每天拘留大约 10 人。加州国民警卫队士兵于周五抵达，帮助守卫财产。
加州州长加文·纽森于周六发布消息称，“加州不会允许抢劫。”
历史成本
周二在洛杉矶市中心以北开始的火灾烧毁了 12,000 多座建筑。
最大的火灾原因尚未确定，初步估计表明，此次野火可能是美国有史以来最昂贵的火灾。 AccuWeather 初步估计，迄今为止的损失和经济损失在 1350 亿美元至 1500 亿美元之间。
州长加文·纽瑟姆在周日 NBC 播出的采访中表示，这场大火可能最终成为美国历史上最严重的自然灾害。
“我认为，就规模和范围而言，火灾造成的损失将非常大，”他说。
囚犯消防员冲在前线
除了来自其他州和墨西哥的消防队外，数百名来自加州监狱系统的囚犯也在协助灭火工作。据加州惩教和康复部最新消息，近 950 名被监禁的消防员被派往“切断火线并清除燃料以减缓火势蔓延”。
尽管该州长期以来一直依靠监狱劳工来灭火，但这种做法存在争议，因为囚犯从事危险而艰巨的工作却只获得很少的报酬。据惩教部门称，囚犯每天最多能得到 10.24 美元的报酬，如果是 24 小时轮班，还可以得到额外的报酬。
满满的善意
志愿者挤满了捐赠中心，有些志愿者不得不被拒之门外，包括圣塔安尼塔公园赛马场，失去家园的人们在那里仔细挑选成堆的捐赠衬衫、毯子和其他家居用品。
阿尔塔迪纳居民 Jose Luis Godinez 说，他十几位家人居住的三所房屋被毁。
“一切都消失了，”他用西班牙语说道。“我所有的家人都住在那三所房子里，现在我们一无所有。”
重建将是一个挑战
纽森周日发布了一项行政命令，旨在通过暂停一些环境法规并确保不增加房产税评估来加快重建被毁房产。
“我们必须让人们知道我们会支持他们，”他说。 “不要走开，因为我们希望你们回来重建，重建时采用更高质量的建筑标准、更现代的标准。我们希望确保相关成本不会过高，尤其是在像这样的中产阶级社区。”
白宫表示，截至周日，已有 24,000 多人登记领取总统乔·拜登上周三宣布的重大灾难所提供的联邦援助。
洛杉矶市长凯伦·巴斯周日表示，她已经与即将上任的总统政府成员进行了交谈，并表示她预计唐纳德·特朗普将访问受灾地区。
领导层被指偷工减料
巴斯在该市几十年来最大的危机中面临着对她领导能力的严峻考验，但有关领导失职、政治指责和调查的指控已经开始。
纽森周五下令州政府官员查明为何一个 1.17 亿加仑（4.4 亿升）的水库停止使用，一些消防栓干涸。
洛杉矶消防局局长克劳利表示，市领导层未能为消防部门提供足够的资金，因此未能履行职责。她还批评了消防部门缺水的问题。
“当消防员来到消防栓前时，我们预计会有水，”克劳利说。
题图：一名消防员在加利福尼亚州阿尔塔迪纳与伊顿大火搏斗。Jill Connelly/Bloomberg
附原英文报道：
24 dead as fire crews try to corral Los Angeles blazes before winds return this week
By CHRISTOPHER WEBER and HOLLY RAMER The Associated Press,Updated January 12, 2025
A firefighter battles the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California.Jill Connelly/Bloomberg
Firefighters scrambled Sunday to make further progress against wildfires that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed 24 people in the Los Angeles area as forecasters again warned of dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week. At least 16 people were missing, and authorities said that number was expected to rise.
The National Weather Service issued red flag warnings for severe fire conditions through Wednesday, with sustained winds of 50 mph (80 kph) and gusts in the mountains reaching 70 mph (113 kph). The most dangerous day will be Tuesday, said weather service meteorologist Rich Thompson.
“You’re going to have really strong gusty Santa Ana winds, a very dry atmosphere and still very dry brush, so we still have some very critical fire weather conditions out there,” Thompson said at a community meeting Saturday night.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony C. Marrone said 70 additional water trucks arrived to help firefighters fend off flames spread by renewed gusts. “We are prepared for the upcoming wind event,” Marrone said. Fire retardant dropped by aircraft Sunday will act as a barrier along hillsides, officials said.
How a small fire in Los Angeles turned into a monster, hour by hour
Fierce Santa Anas have been largely blamed for turning the wildfires sparked last week into infernos that leveled entire neighborhoods around the city where there has been no significant rainfall in more than eight months.
Twelve people were missing within the Eaton Fire zone and four were missing from the Palisades Fire, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said. Luna added that “dozens” more reports might have come in Sunday morning and investigators were reconciling whether some of the missing might be among the dead. There are no children among those reported missing, he said.
Meanwhile, the death toll rose to 24 over the weekend. Eight of the deaths were attributed to the Palisades Fire and 16 resulted from the Eaton Fire, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office said in a statement Sunday evening.
Officials said they expected that figure to increase as teams with cadaver dogs conduct systematic grid searches in leveled neighborhoods. Authorities have established a center where people can report the missing.
Officials also were building an online database to allow evacuated residents to see if their homes were damaged or destroyed. In the meantime, LA city Fire Chief Kristin Crowley urged people to stay away from scorched neighborhoods.
“There are still active fires that are burning within the Palisades area, making it extremely, extremely dangerous for the public,” Crowley said at a Sunday morning briefing. “There’s no power, there’s no water, there’s broken gas lines, and we have unstable structures.”
Officials warned the ash can contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.
About 150,000 people in Los Angeles County remained under evacuation orders, with more than 700 residents taking refuge in nine shelters, Luna said. Officials said most of the orders in the Palisades area were unlikely to be lifted before the red flag warnings expire Wednesday evening.
“Please rest assured that first thing Thursday we will begin talking about repopulation,” Marrone said.
By Sunday morning, Cal Fire reported the Palisades, Eaton, Kenneth and Hurst fires had consumed more than 62 square miles (160 square kilometers), an area larger than San Francisco. The Palisades Fire was 11% contained and containment on the Eaton Fire reached 27%. Those two blazes accounted for 59 square miles (nearly 153 square kilometers).
Crews from California and nine other states are part of the ongoing response that includes nearly 1,400 fire engines, 84 aircraft and more than 14,000 personnel, including newly arrived firefighters from Mexico.
Fighting to save public and private areas
Minimal growth was expected Sunday for the Eaton Fire “with continued smoldering and creeping” of flames, an LA County Fire Department incident report said. Most evacuation orders for the area have been lifted.
After a fierce battle Saturday, firefighters managed to fight back flames in Mandeville Canyon, home to Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities near Pacific Palisades not far from the coast, where swooping helicopters dumped water as the blaze charged downhill.
The fire ran through chaparral-covered hillsides and also briefly threatened to jump over Interstate 405 and into densely populated areas in the Hollywood Hills and San Fernando Valley.
Arrests for looting
Looting continues to be a concern, with authorities reporting more arrests as the devastation grows. Michael Lorenz, a captain with the Los Angeles Police Department, said seven people have been arrested in recent days, with two suspects “posing as firefighters coming and in and out of houses.”
Asked exactly how many looters have been arrested, Lorenz said he couldn’t give a precise number but that officers were detaining about 10 people a day. California National Guard troops arrived Friday to help guard properties.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted on X Saturday that “California will NOT allow for looting.”
Historical cost
The fires that began Tuesday just north of downtown LA have burned more than 12,000 structures.
No cause has been determined for the largest fires and early estimates indicate the wildfires could be the nation’s costliest ever. A preliminary estimate by AccuWeather put the damage and economic losses so far between $135 billion and $150 billion.
In an interview that aired Sunday on NBC, Gov. Gavin Newsom said the fires could end up being the worst natural disaster in U.S. history.
“I think it will be in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope,” he said.
Inmate firefighters on the front lines
Along with crews from other states and Mexico, hundreds of inmates from California’s prison system were also helping firefighting efforts. Nearly 950 incarcerated firefighters were dispatched “to cut fire lines and remove fuel to slow fire spread,” according to an update from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Though the state has long relied on prison labor to fight fires, the practice is controversial as the inmates are paid little for dangerous and difficult work. Inmates are paid up to roughly $10.24 each day, with additional money for 24-hour shifts, according to the corrections department.
Overflowing kindness
Volunteers overflowed donation centers and some had to be turned away at locations including the Santa Anita Park horse racing track, where people who lost their homes sifted through stacks of donated shirts, blankets and other household goods.
Altadena resident Jose Luis Godinez said three homes occupied by more than a dozen of his family members were destroyed.
“Everything is gone,” he said, speaking in Spanish. “All my family lived in those three houses and now we have nothing.”
Rebuilding will be a challenge
Newsom issued an executive order Sunday aimed at fast-tracking the rebuilding of destroyed property by suspending some environmental regulations and ensuring that property tax assessments are not increased.
“We’ve got to let people know that we have their back,” he said. “Don’t walk away because we want you to come back, rebuild, and rebuild with higher quality building standards, more modern standards. We want to make sure that the associated costs with that are not disproportionate, especially in a middle-class community like this.”
The White House said as of Sunday more than 24,000 people have registered for federal assistance made available by President Joe Biden’s major disaster declaration last Wednesday.
LA Mayor Karen Bass said Sunday that she has spoken with members of the incoming presidential administration and said she expects Donald Trump will come visit the devastated region.
Leadership accused of skimping
Bass faces a critical test of her leadership during the city’s greatest crisis in decades, but allegations of leadership failures, political blame and investigations have begun.
Newsom on Friday ordered state officials to determine why a 117 million-gallon (440 million-liter) reservoir was out of service and some hydrants had run dry.
Crowley, the LA fire chief, said city leadership failed her department by not providing enough money for firefighting. She also criticized the lack of water.
“When a firefighter comes up to a hydrant, we expect there’s going to be water,” Crowley said.
Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York, Sophia Tareen in Chicago and Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia, contributed.
