LA fires live updates: At least 11 dead as over 10,000 homes and businesses destroyed

The widespread presence of ash and particulate matter in the air following the California wildfires has caused local health officials to declare a local health emergency on Friday.

The announcement followed several days of heavy smoke and ash in the Los Angeles area, which is battling multiple fires at once.

“The fires, coupled with strong winds, have severely degraded air quality by releasing hazardous smoke and particulate matter, posing immediate and long-term risks to public health,” a news release from the county’s public health department states. “Additionally, the fires have caused widespread displacement of residents, prompted emergency evacuations from healthcare facilities, and disrupted vital health services and resources.”

Additionally, the department is restricting the use of power air blowers and leaf blowers.

Los Angeles County residents received erroneous alerts this week telling them to evacuate as officials tried to fix the county alert system.

On Thursday, emergency officials tried sending alerts to people only in the Calabasas and Agoura Hills areas, a fire official told CNN. But the evacuation alert was sent to everyone in the county.

Authorities blamed the alerts on technical issues. The issue helped shine a light on a potential flaw in the system. Residents are sent evacuation orders based on where they are in the city and not their home address, which could lead residents to panic even if their home is not under threat.

The governor is directing state water and firefighting officials to launch a probe to determine why fire hydrants in the Palisades area were unusable this week.

The inability to use fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors, Newsom wrote in a letter to Los Angeles Department of Water and Power CEO Janisse Quiñones and Mark Pestrella, director of Los Angeles County Public Works

“We need answers to how that happened,” he wrote. The letter asks LADWP and Los Angeles County officials to quickly put together a report explaining any causes of lost water pressure and unavailable water supplies, along with an examination of local preparedness efforts and response procedures.

Los Angeles fire officials are asking residents around Interstate 405 and the Encino Reservoir to evacuate, according to an alert sent out by the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The expansion borders the Getty Center and one of Los Angeles’ busiest freeways.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner is reporting 11 deaths in connection with the wildfires. The latest victim died in Topanga due to the Palisades fire, according to the medical examiner’s website. Additional information is pending.

Five people have now died in the Palisades fire. Six have died in the Eaton fire. The Palisades fire is eight percent contained, while the Eaton Fire is three percent contained. The fires continue to threaten thousands of properties in the area.

CalFire is reporting that the Kenneth Fire is now 50 percent contained.