As Crews Battle Hughes Fire in L.A. Area, Emergency Response Continues

More than two weeks have passed since the start of the Palisades Fire, and firefighters are battling a new major blaze, the Hughes Fire, which ignited north of Santa Clarita early on January 22. As of 3 p.m. on January 23, the fire had burned more than 10,000 acres across L.A. and Ventura counties with 24 percent containment.

The rapidly growing fire prompted the evacuation of approximately 31,000 people on Wednesday, with an additional 23,000 people placed under evacuation warnings; several of these evacuation notices have since been downgraded or lifted. In addition, the fire has triggered a smoke advisory for northern L.A. County, Simi Valley, and Thousand Oaks.

In addition to the Hughes Fire, containment and suppression efforts continue for the Eaton and Palisades fires, which have burned more than 37,000 acres, with 72 and 95 percent containment, respectively. As of January 23, officials had confirmed 28 deaths resulting from the fires, as well as the damage or destruction of more than 17,700 homes, businesses, and other structures.

With as much as half an inch of rain forecasted for L.A. and surrounding areas this weekend, officials are warning of the risk of debris flows and landslides in burn scar areas and have mobilized extensive efforts to clear debris and mitigate the flow of ash and other pollutants from fire-affected areas into storm drain systems, which empty into the ocean.

Meanwhile, more than 500 personnel from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been deployed to conduct the first of a two-phase debris removal process for areas impacted by the Eaton and Palisades fires. As the first phase, which began January 16 and entails the removal of hazardous materials, such as batteries, cleaning supplies, fertilizers, paints, and pesticides, gets underway, authorities have started to allow some communities, including those from all areas affected by the Eaton Fire and designated communities from areas affected by the Palisades Fire, to begin to repopulate.

Residents in repopulated zones are urged to take precautions to avoid exposure to ash and other hazardous debris that may contain toxins, such as asbestos, lead, and other chemicals, with L.A. County Department of Public Health reporting its staff members are distributing personal protective equipment, including Direct Relief-provided reentry kits, to residents as they return to their properties.

Direct Relief's Response to Los Angeles-Area Wildfires

In response to the unprecedented wildfires raging across L.A. County, Direct Relief has made available more than $100 million in medicines and medical supplies, including 2.3 million N95 respirators, to community health centers, free and charitable clinics, and other healthcare partners in fire-affected areas. In addition, Direct Relief has awarded $1 million in emergency operating grants to 22 local organizations, comprising safety net providers, mobile clinics, search and rescue teams, reproductive health organizations, and other nonprofits, responding to the needs of affected communities. The grants are intended to backstop operating budgets, enabling these response partners to sustain crucial services and support affected staff.

Direct Relief has also deployed several emergency response teams to deliver critically needed relief items to several community health centers, evacuation shelters, government agencies, relief distribution hubs, and retail locations throughout L.A.; additional deliveries of specifically requested emergency medical aid are being shipped from Direct Relief's Santa Barbara warehouse directly to healthcare facilities and other response partners. Direct Relief is working closely with government agencies, health associations, and other nonprofits, as well as its expansive partner network of community health centers, free and charitable clinics, and other safety net providers in impacted areas to identify priority needs and coordinate response efforts.

Cumulatively, between January 8 and 22, Direct Relief emergency response teams conducted 52 deliveries of critically needed relief items, including N95 and P100 respirators, household hygiene kits, reentry kits, emergency medical backpacks, an emergency health kit, and insulin pens, among other items, to more than 36 locations in support of wildfire-affected communities. Amid ongoing air quality concerns, including those related to windborne dust and ash, Direct Relief continues to receive a high volume of requests for N95 respirators.

As the immediate response starts to transition to early recovery, Direct Relief is partnering with the L.A. Fire Department, the L.A. County Department of Public Health, and the City of Pasadena to deliver reentry kits for distribution to community members by these agencies. The kits are designed to support the safe reentry of fire-impacted households into their communities and homes and contain coveralls, N95 respirators, nitrile and work gloves, protective goggles, and shoe covers needed to help protect residents from ash and other hazardous debris.

In addition to the supplies delivered by response teams, Direct Relief has also shipped approximately $294,000 in specifically requested emergency medical aid to seven community health centers, two nonprofit health organizations, including Vision y Compromiso and Medical Mission Adventures, as well as the L.A. County Department of Public Health, L.A. Fire Department, and L.A. County Sheriff's Department. The requested aid included essential medications, field medic packs for triage care, personal care products for evacuees, as well as N95 respirators and other personal protective equipment.

In addition, health partners have requested antibiotics, cholesterol medicine, glucose test strips and other diabetes supplies, hepatitis A, B, and Tdap vaccines, infant formula, insulin and oral diabetes medicine, nebulizers, nutritional products, over-the-counter products, solar chargers, and water purification tablets, among other products.

Meanwhile, Direct Relief continues to support healthcare providers throughout L.A. County, as well as across the U.S., with continuous access to essential medicines and medical supplies via its ongoing support programs.

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