Firefighters don't have enough water to put out out-of-control fires in Los Angeles

In Los Angeles (California), rescue crews fighting multiple wildfires are short of water. This was reported by Reuters on January 8.

City officials said their municipal water systems are working efficiently. The problem is that they were designed to put out localized fires in the city, not to fight wildfires.

"It's not that Southern California doesn't have enough water, it's that this particular area of Southern California doesn't have enough water for only the few hours it takes to put out fires," said Jay Land, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of California, Davis.

Fighting a fire in which multiple hydrants will pump water for hours on end is impossible, according to Los Angeles County Department of Public Works Director Mark Prestol.

The water shortage has particularly complicated operations in Pacific Palisades, an upscale neighborhood where the wildfire has destroyed virtually 4,856 hectares.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power notified that all water tanks available in the city, including three with a capacity of 3.8 million liters in the Palisades area, were filled before the storm. The department also urged residents to conserve water.

Earlier in the day, acting US President Joe Biden declared a major disaster regime in the state of California due to forest fires.

Earlier, on January 7, emergency services of Los Angeles urged residents to be ready to evacuate due to raging wildfires in the state. NBC News reported that the fire started in the Eaton Canyon neighborhood. Strong winds fueled the fire.

At the same time in Los Angeles declared a state of emergency because of the fire situation. It was reported that 27 thousand residents of Pacific Palisades are called for forced evacuation.

In addition, in the evacuation zone was the residence of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who said she sympathized with all her heart to those affected by the fire. At the same time, CNN reported that the flames destroyed 2.9 thousand acres (more than 1,173 hectares) of land.