Fire hydrants ran dry due extreme demand in Pacific Palisades, officials say
CBSN
Some fire hydrants in Pacific Palisades ran dry overnight Tuesday due to "extreme demand" and low water pressure, Los Angeles officials said.
The Palisades Fire, which was first reported at 10:30 a.m. local time Tuesday, has grown to over 15,800 acres with zero containment, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire. The blaze burned through at least 1,000 buildings by Wednesday.
Janisse Quiñones, chief executive and chief engineer of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, said at a Wednesday press conference that all three 1-million-gallon water tanks in the area ran dry by 3 a.m., reducing water pressure for fire hydrants at higher elevations.
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Wildfires raged across Southern California on Wednesday, leaving at least two people dead and prompting thousands of evacuations as blazes closed in on Los Angeles neighborhoods like the Pacific Palisades and residents hurried to escape. Maps of the region show where the Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire and others are engulfing thousands of acres of land.