The city of Los Angeles is counting on a heavy presence of Canadians on its fire departments this week as multiple fires ravage the city and tens of thousands of people are forced to flee their homes. Specifically, the Quebec government confirmed Wednesday that its aircraft are currently working to extinguish the Los Angeles fire.
Canadian news agency Coulson Aviation, a private company specializing in firefighting aircraft, is also participating in the emergency efforts. reported on wednesday.
The Los Angeles area is on the brink of a series of historic and destructive fires that began ravaging homes in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles on Tuesday. Fires have since been recorded at several other locations in the city, including Eaton and the Hollywood Hills.
at least 5 people died Confirmed Regarding the fires, as of Thursday morning, some of the fires, including the two largest fires, were 0% contained. Gusts of wind exacerbate the spread of fires, as do dry undergrowth that is prevalent in forested areas, but California officials do not regularly remove underbrush to prevent the fires from spreading rapidly. It also comes after radical leftist Mayor Karen Bass's decision to cut the city's fire department budget by nearly $20 million this year, leaving firefighters running out of water and without adequate equipment to deal with the crisis. Reports of not having one are also having a negative impact on firefighting efforts.
Watch — Breitbart News reports on the Eaton Fire in the Los Angeles area.
Some reports suggest that New Year's Eve fireworks may have started the initial fire, which continued to burn for several days and began to spread in parts due to strong winds that picked up a few days later, but local Authorities have not confirmed that theory. They also did not provide any other explanation for the fire at press time, instead focusing on responding to the emergency.
Supporting firefighting efforts in Los Angeles are Canadian CL-415 water bombers flying out of Quebec, Canadian Press reports. The plane had already arrived in California as a result of an existing agreement for Quebec to loan the plane in the fall, after the threat from Canada's biggest wildfire subsides.
“California is currently going through a difficult time due to the wildfires,” Francois Bonardel, Quebec's public safety minister, said in a statement on social media Wednesday, adding that California is working closely with the “Government of Quebec” and its fire department. He made it clear that he could rely on the support of institutions.
“Two Quebec government air tankers have already arrived on the scene, and SOPFEU [regional fire agency] California could send in additional firefighters if it wanted. we are with you! Bonnardell added.
The Canadian Press also highlighted the efforts of Coulson Aviation, a Canadian fire company, which confirmed this week that it is operating aircraft in Los Angeles. coulson I will explain The company has been a family-owned business for decades and has been involved in “helicopter logging, forest fire suppression, power line construction, airline passenger transport, transportation, and many other industrial heavy-lift operations.”
Coulson acknowledged Tuesday that it was “on the front lines of the Palisades fire.”
Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Sheila Kelliher lamented in an interview with Fox News on Wednesday that authorities lack sufficient water resources to quell the blaze, and devastating winds are hampering aerial efforts. .
“We have water tanks in this area…These are not built for 15-hour gunfights. We all use water. They just aren't designed for that. They're not built for residential use. It is not designed for field firefighting,” Kelliher explained.
“Another thing that was against us was that when the wind was too strong, air support was useless, so we had a lot of air support and water coming from above. were also dependent,” the captain added.
Orange County Fire Chief Brian Fennessy explained in an interview Wednesday that another issue firefighters are struggling with is how flammable much of the ground in the area is.
“Dead and dry chaparral still remains on the hillside, mixed in with green living brush that will eventually die,” he told Fox News. “So that's also contributing to the rapid spread of the fires that we're seeing. … That dead vegetation is still on that mountainside.”
Canada's presence in firefighting efforts is noteworthy given the frequency of devastating wildfires occurring in the country. Many experts blame poor forest management under outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leftist government, as well as disorganized and unprepared firefighting equipment.
in canada no A federal emergency agency similar to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the United States. no This means that even if a wildfire becomes large enough to spread across multiple states, each state must respond on its own. Experts have long warned that the Canadian government's failure to clear underbrush and properly manage forests could lead to disaster.
“Canada hasn't put enough money into forest fire proactive management, and it's not going to get any better,” said Kenneth P. Green, a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute, a Canadian think tank. I wrote In June 2023, a very large fire broke out in Canada, blanketing New York City in thick orange smoke. “Despite the increasing incidence of wildfire disasters in Canada, funding to support wildfire prevention, mitigation and preparedness has not kept up with the growing need to reduce wildfire impacts.” .”
In 2021, an article was published in a Canadian newspaper. gloves and mail Officials accused them of making “decades of bad decisions” regarding forest management.
“Studies of British Columbia forests show that in past centuries, small to medium-sized fires occurred frequently every few decades. Many trees will survive,” the newspaper said. explainedThe forest is “full of dead trees and basically on fire.”
Canada failed to contain the 2023 wildfires, which continued to burn under deep snow throughout the winter.zombie fire”
Prime Minister Trudeau quickly blamed “climate change” for the devastating wildfires of 2023. Canada has become one of the world's leading countries in carbon dioxide emissions from wildfires. worst polluter In 2023.
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