For the latest on all the fires affecting Southern California visit Fire.ca.gov. For LA County visit LACounty.gov/emergency or LAFD.org/alerts. For safety tips and other information on how to prepare for emergencies and evacuations visit fire.lacounty.gov.

PACIFIC PALISADES (CNS) - Containment of the deadly Palisades Fire crept upward as fire crews focused their efforts on protecting homes in the Mandeville Canyon area and snuffing out hot spots ahead of another round of potentially damaging Santa Ana winds Tuesday.

As of Tuesday morning, the week-old Palisades Fire had scorched 23,713 acres and was 17% contained, up from 14% Monday night.

Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said the agency has "maximized" its resources in anticipation of the next round of Santa Ana winds, and she credited the fire crews that have traveled from around the country and from Mexico and Canada to help battle the area's fires.

"We are so very grateful for the firefighters and the first responders that have already arrived and continue to arrive in the Southern California region," Crowley said Monday. "We absolutely know we cannot do this on our own."

At least eight people have died in the week-old Palisades Fire, although authorities said they anticipate the number of fatalities to continue rising as crews begin sifting through the ash and rubble.

Over the weekend, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's office identified one of the victims as 84-year-old Charles Mortimer, who died at a hospital of acute myocardial infraction and effects of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries.

Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell said the agency has investigated 34 missing-person reports tied to the fire -- 21 of them have been found safe, two are believed to be dead but awaiting confirmation from the medical examiner, and 11 remain unaccounted for.

At least 5,000 structures are believed to have been destroyed or damaged in the blaze that has been burning since Jan. 7. That number is also expected to rise as more assessments are done in the burn area.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

According to the National Weather Service, a "long-duration" Santa Ana wind event will blast the region with high-speed gusts through Wednesday. Red flag warnings of critical fire danger will be in effect for most of the next two days, including some "particularly dangerous situation" red flag warnings denoting particularly hazardous conditions.

Authorities warned residents near the fire areas that air quality continues to be highly unhealthy. People were urged to suspend the use of leaf blowers, to stay inside with doors and windows closed as much as possible, and to wear masks if they do go outside.

The South Coast AQMD extended a Windblown Dust Advisory until 7 p.m. Wednesday due to high winds in most of L.A. and nearby counties in the South Coast Air Basin. Blowing dust may result in Air Quality Index levels that are unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse.

Compounding the wind events, humidity continues to be low, and the region is suffering from an unusually long absence of rainfall. Forecasters said the Palisades area has not experienced any significant rain since last April, and no rain is forecast for the next two weeks.

At a Sunday afternoon news conference from Malibu's Zuma Beach, officials said they were as prepared as they can be for this week's expected wind event.

Nancy Ward, director of the California Office of Emergency Services, said state officials have pre-positioned additional engines, fire crews, bulldozers and water-dropping aircraft throughout the region.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said Monday it has restored power to all its customers, with the exception of 17,600 customers in Pacific Palisades, Brentwood, Sylmar and Encino, where lines remain deactivated as a public safety measure. Crews will restore power once cleared by fire authorities, according to Unified LA officials.

The fire burned to the north and east over the weekend, threatening to march into the Encino area and toward the San Diego (405) Freeway. New evacuations were ordered Saturday after the fire made a dramatic shift. The massive mandatory evacuation zone was stretched from the Pacific Ocean to the west, the San Diego (405) Freeway to the east, San Vicente Boulevard to the south and the Encino Reservoir to the north.

Evacuation warnings were issued for the following two areas: Sunset Boulevard to the south, Mullholland Drive to the north, Bellagio Road/Roscomare Road to the east and the 405 Freeway to the west; along with separate zone that included Mulholland/Sepulveda Boulevard to the south, the 405 to the east, Ventura Boulevard to the north and Louise Avenue to the west.

Katherine E. Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, says "the Getty Center and Getty Villa remain safe from the Palisades Fire, and we continue to monitor the situation closely."

Fleming said the Getty Center in Brentwood "will likely remain closed until Monday, Jan. 20," while the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades is closed until further notice.

"We remain acutely aware of our affected staff, our Getty neighbors, and the whole Los Angeles region, and extend our heartfelt sympathy and hope for everyone's safety," Fleming said.

As conditions changed Monday, some mandatory evacuation areas were reduced to evacuation warnings. Evacuations were likely to continue fluctuating based on fire behavior and wind conditions.

Evacuation centers were set up at the following locations:

-- Westwood Recreation Center, 1350 S. Sepulveda Blvd.;

-- Van Nuys/Sherman Oaks Recreation Center, 14201 Huston St., Sherman Oaks;

-- Lanark Recreation Center, 21816 Lanark St., Canoga Park;

-- Calvary Community Church, 5495 Via Rocas, Westlake Village;

-- Ritchie Valens Recreation Center, 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd.;

-- Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St.;

-- Stoner Recreation Center, 1835 Stoner Ave.;

-- Pan Pacific Recreation Center, 7600 Beverly Blvd.

Small animals were being taken at the following locations:

-- El Camino High School, 5440 Valley Circle Blvd, Woodland Hills;

-- Agoura Animal Care Center, 29525 Agoura Road, Agoura Hills;

-- Baldwin Park Animal Care Center, 4275 Elton St., Baldwin Park;

-- Carson Animal Care Center, 216 W. Victoria St., Gardena;

-- Castaic Animal Care Center, 31044 Charlie Canyon Road;

-- Downey Animal Care Center, 11258 Garfield Ave.;

-- Lancaster Animal Care Center, 5210 W. Ave I;

-- Palmdale Animal Care Center, 38550 Sierra Highway, Palmdale.

Large animals were being taken at the following locations:

-- Pomona Fairplex, 101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona;

-- Industry Hills Expo, 16200 Temple Ave., City of Industry;

-- LA Equestrian, 480 Riverside Drive, Burbank;

-- Castaic Animal Care Center, 31044 Charlie Canyon Road;

-- Pico Rivera Sports Arena, 11003 Sports Arena Drive.

The American Red Cross Sheltering Site was also assisting with a mobile animal shelter for small animals only.

A curfew continues to be in effect nightly from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in the mandatory evacuation areas in the Palisades and Eaton fire zones. Only firefighters, utility workers and law enforcement personnel are allowed in those areas.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna reported Tuesday that 39 people had been arrested in fire areas patroled by the sheriff's department -- 33 in Eaton Fire area, and six in the Palisades Fire area. McDonnell sayid the LAPD has made 14 arrests. The arrests by both agencies included a variety of offenses, including curfew violations, burglary, drug and weapon possession, DUI, vandalism, and ammunition possession. McDonnell said one person was arrested for impersonating a police officer, and another for impersonating a firefighter.

Two men in black jumpsuits were arrested outside Vice President Kamala Harris' Brentwood home. Two more arrests involved suspected drone-fliers above the Eaton Fire.

The Santa Monica Police Department, which implemented mandatory and voluntary evacuation orders in the northern part of the city, announced that it has made roughly 40 arrests.

Most Los Angeles Unified School District campuses reopened Monday, following several days of closures last week due to the fires. Masks were being provided to students and employees, and all open schools will be limited from conducting outdoor and athletics activities.

Some schools in the most severely impacted areas remained closed due to mandatory evacuation orders. Those include Canyon Charter Elementary, Kenter Canyon Charter Elementary, Palisades Charter Elementary, Marquez Charter Elementary, Topanga Charter Elementary, Lanai Road Elementary and Paul Revere Middle School, Roscomare Road Elementary and Community Magnet Charter.

To provide support to fire-affected students and employees, a meal distribution event was hosted from 9 a.m. to noon Monday at Daniel Webster Middle School in the Palms area.

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District stated that all schools in Santa Monica, except Roosevelt Elementary School would be open Monday, while they were closely monitoring weather conditions.

However, schools in Malibu were scheduled to remain closed till Wednesday.

According to Cal Fire, detailed damage inspection maps for properties within the Palisades Fire footprint showing damaged or destroyed homes -- as well as homes that are not damaged or destroyed -- can be found at www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2025/1/7/palisades-fire.

Los Angeles County officials said its damage assessments can be viewed at www.recovery.lacounty.gov/palisades-fire. They will be updated daily in real time.

The Palisades Fire erupted around 10:30 a.m. Jan. 7 in the area of Piedra Morada and Monte Hermoso drives as the area was under a red flag warning for critical fire danger due to a historic wind event that saw gusts of 80 mph. It continued to grow exponentially Tuesday and Wednesday thanks to heavy fuel loads and powerful Santa Ana winds.

Gary and Shannon

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