'Danger Has Not Yet Passed': Eaton Fire Grows Containment

6:30 a.m. UPDATE: The Eaton Fire is now 45% contained and has burned 14,117 acres.

ORIGINAL STORY:

LOS ANGELES, CA — Despite threats of hurricane-force level winds, firefighters gained containment and remain optimistic Tuesday as the Eaton Fire rages on for a second week.

The Eaton Fire is at 35 percent contained at 14,117 acres. On Tuesday, officials were preparing for the worst of the winds arriving in the late afternoon into Thursday.

"Life-threatening and destructive and widespread winds are already here for this significant wind event," said Los Angeles Police Department Police Chief Kristin Crowley. " I urge, and everybody here urges you, to remain alert as danger has not yet passed."

Repopulation efforts continued Tuesday, according to Capt. Jabari Williams with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, in areas where evacuation orders were downgraded to warnings. Officials finally opened up areas in Altadena for resident access only on Tuesday.

Specifically, residents can enter:

• South of Heights Road to New York Drive and East of Outpost Lane to Sierra Madre Villa Avenue
• South of Canyon Crest Road and west of Lincoln Avenue

To check if your home is an area open for repopulation, visit Protect.Genasys.com. The remainder of Altadena remains too unsafe to allow repopulation, officials said.

"We're trying to get people back to their residents, but we want to make sure that that area is safe before we do so," Williams said.

For residents returning to fire-affected areas, officials recommended wearing protective clothing, minding health hazards and following official guidance. Do not attempt to restore power, gas or water service until a professional has inspected the system, officials warned.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department has created maps, showing which homes are known to have been destroyed or damaged by the Eaton Fire as crews continue to inspect the damage. As of Tuesday morning, 7,855 structures have been inspected, with 441 structures reported to be damaged and 3,988 reported to be destroyed.

The homes in red have been destroyed, while the homes in orange suffered major damage. Yellow homes endured minor damage, green had little impact, and homes in black were unscathed by flames. Many, outlined in gray, have not yet been assessed for damage by authorities.

The maps will be updated throughout the week. Click here for interactive updates.

FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers opened Tuesday afternoon, offering resources for residents impacted by the fires. Starting Wednesday, the centers will be open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The Eaton Fire Disaster Recovery Center is located at the Pasadena City College Community Education Center at 3035 East Foothill Boulevard, Pasadena.

Services will be available to people who have lost records, including birth certificates, death certificates, driver's licenses and social security cards. People who have lost their homes or businesses can apply for disaster relief loans.

Mental health counseling and other services will also be available.

The centers will include representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which had been offering assistance previously at eight Los Angeles County libraries. Those services will now be located at the two new Disaster Recovery Centers.

More bodies were found in the ashes of the Eaton Fire Sunday, and there are still more to find as deputies search grid by grid in the rubble of one of Los Angeles County's oldest and most unique communities. Sixteen people have died in the Eaton Fire, and still at least 16 others have been reported missing, authorities announced Monday. It brings the toll in the county's fires to 24 lives lost so far.

While deputies and cadaver dogs search the rubble, firefighters are battling to get the upper hand on the blaze even as the Santa Ana winds have returned for a second week through Thursday.

"The good news was that no other remains were found yesterday, hopefully that happens again today. We don't want the death toll to continue to go up," LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said.

One of the victims was identified as 66-year-old Victor Shaw of Altadena, who died in his residence after suffering from smoke inhalation and thermal injuries, according to the Los Angeles County Office of Medical Examiner.

Damage estimates from remote sensing technologies indicate more than 7,000 structures have been destroyed or damaged, many of them homes and nearly 30,000 structures were said to be threatened. Those numbers were expected to rise after further evaluation.

An army of firefighters worked overnight clearing more lines of vegetation around the fire while cutting down falling trees that were making it dangerous for firefighters and the public to get around.

"Our firefighters and first responders are standing strong. They hold their heads up high, and they will continue to work hard for you," Crowley said.

Owing to fast-spreading fires, SoCalGas officials said the utility had temporarily shut off natural gas service to 16,700 customers Saturday in the Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre communities.

SoCalGas was working with contractors and mutual aid from San Diego Gas and Electric, Northwest Natural, and Pacific Gas and Electric to restore service, the company stated, adding it could take days or even weeks to restore service due to the large number of impacted customers.

SoCalGas Senior Vice President and Chief Infrastructure Officer Rodger Schwecke said residents will see utility restoration starting this week. Schwecke said restoration of gas service will start on the eastern side of the area and will slowly move to the west.

High wind warnings were in place until 3 p.m. Thursday for the San Gabriel Mountains, with locally damaging winds hightening risk of rapid fire spread and long range spotting. The National Weather Service warned that these damging winds could blow down trees and powerlines.

"The National Weather Service is predicting close to hurricane force level winds, and so we're making urgent preparations," LA Mayor Karen Bass said at a Monday press conference. "My top priority, and the priority of everyone else, is to do everything we can to protect lives as these winds approach."

Officials said most evacuation orders for the Pasadena area had been lifted. California National Guard troops arrived on the streets of Altadena last week to help protect property in the fire evacuation zone, and evening curfews were in effect to prevent looting after several earlier arrests.

A curfew and area-wide evacuation order was still in place for areas under evacuation order on Tuesday, amid dangerous conditions in the aftermath of the fire. Downed power lines, smoldering telephone poles, falling branches, and choking ashes are among the hazards plaguing the area.

The unincorporated community has a population of more than 42,000.

A Family Assistance Center was opened in Pasadena to help residents whose loved ones are still missing. The center is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Pasadena Convention Center Visitor’s Bureau. LA Sheriff Robert Luna on Saturday also said residents who have lost their identification or other important identifying paperwork can seek help at the center. The convention center has been serving as a place of refuge for evacuees and a donation center.

Here's an interactive CalFire map of the evacuations in place for the Eaton Fire.

Survivors return to the wreckage of their homes

Many residents returned to their homes in a state of shock this week. For some, it was a first look at the stark reality of what was lost as the region of 13 million people grapples with the ominous challenge of overcoming the disaster and rebuilding.

Bridget Berg, who was at work when she watched television coverage of her house in Altadena erupt in flames, came back for the first time with her family two days later “just to make it real.”

Their feet crunched across the broken bits of what had been their home for 16 years.

Her kids sifted through debris on the sidewalk, finding a clay pot and a few keepsakes as they searched for Japanese wood prints they hoped to recover. Her husband pulled his hand out of rubble near the still-standing fireplace, holding up a piece of petrified wood handed down by his grandmother.

“It’s OK. It’s OK,” Berg said as much to herself as others as she took stock of the destruction, remembering the deck and pool from which her family watched fireworks. “It’s not like we just lost our house — everybody lost their house.”

While some residents sifted through rubble for keepsakes, officials urged them not to, warning that the ash can contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.

“If you’re kicking that stuff up, you’re breathing it in,” said Chris Thomas, a spokesman for the unified incident command at the Palisades Fire. “All of that stuff is toxic.”

Residents will be allowed to return — with protective gear — after damage teams have evaluated their properties, Thomas said.

Evacuation orders lifted

On Tuesday, evacuation orders for the Eaton Fire were lifted for the following areas:

• The city of Bradbury, and Bradbury estates
• The city of Duarte.
• In La Canada Flintridge, from Angeles Crest Highway east to Oakwood Avenue, north of Angeles Crest Highway at the curve West to Haskell Street, north of Foothill Boulevard to Knight way and the intersection of Gould Canyon Trail at Crown Avenue, east to Varo Road.

Evacuation orders were changed to evacuation warnings for the following areas:

• In La Canada Flintridge, north of Knight way/Gould Canyon Trail and east of Oakwood Avenue/Angeles Crest Highway at the curve, to Gould Mesa Road and Starlight Crest Drive.
• NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• In Altadena, south of New York Drive and east of North Hill Avenue to Altadena Drive.
• In Altadena, south of Heights Road to New York Drive and East of Outpost Lane to Sierra Madre Villa Avenue.

Officials continued to warn people of highly unhealthy air quality in the region, and said drinking water in evacuation zones is not safe to drink.

Some 3,392 personnel were assigned to the firefighting effort, with the U.S. Forest Service, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Pasadena Fire Department, Arcadia Fire Department, Sierra Madre Fire Department, Pasadena Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department working under a unified command.

The entire Angeles National Forest has been closed for public safety and the protection of natural resources through at least Sunday.

A few miles to the east, Santa Anita Park in Arcadia canceled racing this weekend due to the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles County. Morning training continued as scheduled both days and Santa Anita remained open for simulcast wagering.

Track property was being used to support several relief efforts, including the large charity drop-off that was set up at the Rose Bowl and relocated to Santa Anita Park's south parking lot Friday afternoon. Southern California Edison is using the entire north parking lot as its base camp to restore power to those in the affected areas and Santa Anita Park is working with additional response organizations requesting space.

The Eaton Fire was reported at about 6:20 p.m. Jan. 7 in the area of Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive in the hills above Altadena amid hurricane- force Santa Ana winds, according to Cal Fire. The cause of the fire has not been determined.

Among the structures destroyed in the fire was the Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center. The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation reported that the Eaton Canyon Nature Center, Farnsworth Park's Davies Community Center, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Altadena Golf Course Club House and adjacent buildings were destroyed.

Also destroyed in the blaze was The Bunny Museum in Altadena.

Here are the open evacuation centers for the Eaton Fire:

• Ritchie Valens Recreation Center – 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Pacoima, CA 91331
• Calvary Community Church - 5495 Via Rocas., Westlake Village, CA 91362
• Pan Pacific Recreational Center – 7600 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036
• Westwood Recreation Center – 1350 Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025
• Stoner Recreation Center - 1835 Stoner Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90025
• Pomona Fairplex (Gate 3) – 601 W McKinley Ave, Pomona, CA 91768

City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.