Bay Area firefighters have joined forces with other crews to contain several wildfires in Los Angeles County.
One of the blazes, dubbed the Palisades Fire, started in the mountains north of the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday. As of 5 a.m. Thursday, the fire had scorched more than 17,000 acres.
Another fire, called the Eaton Fire, burning in the community of Altadena, has burned about 10,600 acres. Both blazes had zero containment, according to Cal Fire.
Crews from all over the Bay Area, from Marin County to Gilroy, have joined strike teams formed by Cal Fire to contain four major wildfires burning in and around Los Angeles.
NBC Bay Area saw a combined crew from San Jose, Sunnyvale, and Santa Clara County loaded up to head south on Wednesday.
San Jose fire Battalion Chief Javier Ascencio is the strike team leader for one of the crews. He told NBC Bay Area on Wednesday that the crew will be in Southern California for up to two weeks.
“This is an example of us. The state helping out in a time of need,” he said. “We have camping gear. We have everything that we need to be self-sufficient for 72 hours and also to camp out in the dirt if we need to depending on where the firefront is.”
The total number of South Bay firefighters dispatched is now at 46.
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“I know a lot of our personnel have family down there in different areas and since there are several active incidents there’s a good chance that someone’s family has been evacuated,” he said.
On January 8, 2025, Alameda County Firefighters are joining county area fire agency partners, including Oakland Fire (OFD), Hayward Fire (HFD), and Fremont Fire (FFD) as part of a @Cal_OES Strike Team headed to Southern California. #ALCOFIRE#ALCOFirefighters#Palisadesfire pic.twitter.com/1dUuojVmrD
— Alameda County Fire (@AlamedaCoFire) January 8, 2025
They're not the only local crews going. Agencies from all over the Bay Area posted videos of their firefighters leaving as well.
Several engines from San Francisco took off earlier Wednesday and Alameda and Contra Costa counties are sending crews as well.
Despite that, fire officials want to assure the public that local fire stations remain fully staffed.
“So, what you’re seeing back home is no change in response levels right now. We bring in extra personnel. We have extra apparatus that we can use just for situations like this,” said Alameda County Fire deputy chief Ryan Nishimoto.
As for the Bay Area’s fire danger, firefighters point out the region has received a lot more rain than Los Angeles.
“When it comes to vegetation fires right now, we’re pretty much sitting on average for January. It’s moist outside, we don’t have a lot of wind, and relative humidity is right where it should be. Very different than what Southern California is experiencing right now,” Nishimoto said.
Nearly 30,000 residents have been ordered to evacuate across Los Angeles County, including parts of Pasadena, Santa Monica and Malibu. The city of Los Angeles has also declared a state of emergency, according to officials.
