The Palisades and Eaton wildfires, which killed at least 29 people and burned across about 60 sq miles (155 sq km) around Los Angeles, have been fully contained.
California’s department of forestry and fire protection’s announcement on Friday came more than three weeks after the two blazes battered this highly populated area of southern California, laying waste to entire neighborhoods – including Pacific Palisades and Altadena. Containment refers to how much of a perimeter has been established around a fire to prevent it from growing, according to NBC News.
The Palisades fire erupted on 7 January north of Malibu, in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood. The blaze began as a brush fire and rapidly spread amid southern California’s arid conditions.
That night, the Eaton fire broke out in Los Angeles county. This blaze started in the Angeles national forest’s foothills, according to NBC News and, like the Palisades fire, was fueled by dry conditions.
The Palisades fire engulfed 23,448 acres and the Eaton fire burned 14,021, officials said, and both infernos were made more powerful by the strong Santa Ana winds. Early estimates put economic losses at more than $250bn.
Authorities are now probing the fires’ origin. With the Palisades fire, investigators are studying whether a small fire, which firefighters thought they had extinguished, was rekindled by hurricane-force winds across the area, the Los Angeles Times said.
Officials investigating the Eaton fire are examining whether utilities played a role. LA superior court judge Ashfaq G Chowdhury ordered Southern California Edison to preserve its equipment, data and evidence related to the Eaton blaze, according to the Times.
A handful of homeowners have sued Southern California Edison, claiming that its equipment sparked the fire. Authorities are focusing on the base of an electrical tower base on an Eaton canyon hill.
Area residents recorded photos and video of what could be the first flames from the Eaton fire, which appear to be at the bottom of an electrical transmission tower before it spread downhill toward houses, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Southern California Edison has been linked to multiple wildfires. Investigators determined that faulty equipment spurred 2017’s Thomas fire and 2018’s Woolsey fire, which killed three people and caused $6bn in damage.
Southern California Edison has said it will cooperate with authorities.
“While this remains an ongoing investigation, we’re continuing our commitment to transparency and we’ll continue to fully cooperate with the investigation,” Kathleen Dunleavy, a Southern California Edison spokesperson, said.
California has previously seen wildfires sparked by other utility equipment. The Camp fire, which left 85 people dead and razed the town of Paradise, started when a century-old piece of power equipment malfunctioned and spewed sparks into brush.
The Pacific Gas and Electric utility company pleaded guilty to dozens of counts of involuntary manslaughter and settled with local municipalities for $560m and survivors of the Camp fire, and other fatal infernos, for $13.5bn. Pacific Gas and Electric equipment also caused the Zogg and Dixie wildfires in California.
