What to know about the wildfires spreading through Southern California

More than 4,000 acres of land are burning in Southern California from three wildfires, forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate.

With firefighters having not contained any portion of the fires and high winds forecast overnight, anxiety grew over what conditions residents and officials will face as Wednesday breaks.

Here’s what we know so far.

The scopes of the fires

The Palisades fire started Tuesday at about 10:30 a.m. local time, and has burned nearly 3,000 acres of land in Los Angeles County.

The Eaton and Hurst fires both started later Tuesday, with the Eaton fire first reported at about 10:30 p.m. local time, also in Los Angeles County. Late Tuesday night, the Hurst fire was reported in the Sylmar neighborhood north of Los Angeles, leading the L.A. Fire Department to issue evacuation orders near where Interstate 5 meets the 14 and 210 freeways.

By early Wednesday morning Eaton had burned 1,000 acres of land, while the Hurst fire had burned 500 acres of land.

A screenshot from Cal Fire as of 3:53 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday shows the location of three fires burning in southern California: Palisades, Eaton and Hurst.

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The causes of all three fires are being investigated, and they were all at 0% containment early Wednesday morning.

Evacuation orders and warnings have been issued in association with the fires.

Danger posed to neighboring counties

An evacuation order signals the fire poses an “immediate threat to life” and mandates evacuations, while an evacuation warning carries a “potential threat to life and/or property” and suggests that those with pets and livestock, and those who would need more time to evacuate, do so, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, better known as Cal Fire.

The fires could spread to neighboring areas, such as Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties, according to the National Weather Service.

Wildfire season in Southern California typically runs from the late spring to the fall, according to the National Wildfire Coordinating Group.

“This time of year traditionally has not been fire season, but now we disabuse any notion that there is a season,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a video posted to X. “It’s year-round in the state of California.”

Local, state and federal government responses

Newsom declared a state of emergency Tuesday, as did Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

Additionally, five Los Angeles schools will be closed Wednesday, and a sixth school has temporarily relocated and joined with another. The district said it is waiting to make a decision about whether to close the impacted schools Thursday.

Flames reached two schools, the structure of Palisades Charter Elementary, and the playing fields of Palisades Charter High School, according to The Los Angeles Times. The latter school “is currently not in session,” the district said.

More than 200,000 customers in Los Angeles and Ventura counties were without power early Wednesday morning. Firefighting authorities will typically turn off power lines, as a downed line can cause sparks that escalate to flames.

“This is a highly dangerous windstorm that’s creating extreme fire risk – and we’re not out of the woods,” Newsom said. “We’re already seeing the destructive impacts with this fire in Pacific Palisades that grew rapidly in a matter of minutes.”

He said Tuesday that California had secured a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, which will reimburse up to 75% of eligible costs authorities have taken on to suppress the fires.

President Biden said his team is in touch with state and local officials in California and that he is receiving frequent updates.

“My Administration will do everything it can to support the response,” he said. “I urge the residents of the Pacific Palisades and the surrounding areas of Los Angeles to stay vigilant and listen to local officials.”

Weather conditions in the area

Critical fire conditions are expected in parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Thursday. The fires are forecasted to be exacerbated by low humidity, dry vegetation and strong winds between 50 and 100 miles per hour, the National Weather Service said.

The agency has issued wind advisories for the area.

How to prepare

➡️ Trying to stay safe in a wildfire? There’s an app that can help

➡️ Evacuation terms can be confusing. Here’s what they mean and how to sign up for alerts

➡️ How to keep yourself safe from wildfire smoke

➡️ This is why fire officials don’t want you to stay and defend your home

The California Newsroom is following the latest from across the region. Click through to LAist’s coverage for the latest.