The two largest wildfires to ever sweep through Los Angeles in the United States this week have killed 10 and destroyed at least 10,000 homes, buildings and other structures, officials said Friday.
Officials in Los Angeles announced that the Eaton fire, which broke out Tuesday night, has destroyed more than 5,000 structures. This term includes homes, residential buildings, businesses and vehicles.
Another wildfire west of Los Angeles, the largest to ever engulf the area, has destroyed more than 5,300 structures.
The death toll from the wildfires rose to 10 from seven, Los Angeles health officials said in an update Thursday night.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said at a news conference that the death toll is expected to rise.
"It looks like an atomic bomb has been dropped in these areas. We are not expecting good news and we are not looking forward to those numbers," Luna said.
All of the fires that have broken out this week in Los Angeles have engulfed a 25-mile (40-kilometer) stretch north of downtown, prompting a sense of fear and sadness throughout the nation's second-largest city.
The US government has not yet released figures for the cost of the damage caused or the number of structures destroyed.
AccuteWeather, a private company that provides data on the weather and its impact, said on Thursday that the damage and economic losses have reached 135-150 billion dollars.
Firefighters made great strides Thursday to slow the spread of the large fires, but containment remains difficult.
Officials still don't know what caused the fires, but say they are still investigating.
Evacuations, school closures and arrests
At least 180,000 people have been ordered to evacuate, while the fires have covered about 117 square kilometers of territory. The Palisades fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles history.
All schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation's second largest, will remain closed Friday due to heavy smoke blanketing the city and ash falling in some areas.
Classes will not resume until conditions improve, according to officials.
At least 20 people have been arrested for looting and the city of Santa Monica has declared a curfew due to the violation of the law, officials said.
National Guard troops arrived in Los Angeles Thursday evening. The county sheriff said that to protect properties, they will be placed near areas destroyed by the fire and a curfew is expected to be in effect from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m./REL (A2 Televizion)
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