The death toll from the fires in Los Angeles (USA) rises to five

Biden approves major disaster declaration in California

Trump blames California governor for wildfires, while Newsom calls it ‘pure fiction’

MADRID, 9 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The US authorities reported this Wednesday that there have been five fatalities due to the uncontrolled fires that are affecting the city of Los Angeles, in the state of California, while the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has approved the declaration of major disaster in the state.

The mayor of Pasadena, Víctor Gordo, has stated that the community has “experienced a tremendous tragedy”, since more than 100,000 people are under mandatory evacuation orders and another 100,000 are receiving evacuation recommendations because they are “in a danger zone.” .

“This is an opportunity for us, as a community, as a people, to come together and work to support each other. Whether you have been affected or not, take the opportunity to help a neighbor, help a friend,” He stated in statements collected by the American television network CNN.

For her part, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger has asked the population to stay away from the areas affected by the flames: “Please, please, please, if you don’t have to be in the area, we don’t need them in the area. (…) There were a lot of people who don’t live in the area who just wanted to go and take a look.

There are five active wildfires in Los Angeles County, the largest being those in Palisades, which has burned more than 6,400 hectares, and Eaton, which has burned around 4,300 hectares. There are also active fires in Woodley, Hurst and Lidia.

The authorities do not know the origin of the flames and have opened an investigation into the matter. The president, Joe Biden, who has assured that authorities are doing everything possible, has declared a major disaster in the state, ordering federal aid to complement recovery efforts in the affected areas. The day before, the governor of California, Democrat Gavin Newsom, declared a state of emergency.

In this context, the president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, has charged against Newsom through his Truth Social platform, considering that “he is to blame for this” for his water policies, although the governor’s office qualified his “pure fiction” comments.

“He refused to sign the water restoration declaration presented to him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snowmelt from the North, to flow daily to many parts of California, including areas currently are burning in a practically apocalyptic way,” said the Republican.

Newsom’s press office has assured in its X profile that “there is no document called a water restoration declaration”: “It is pure fiction.” Likewise, he added that “the governor is focused on protecting people, not on playing politics, and on making sure that firefighters have all the resources they need.”