PARIS (AP) — Authorities in northern France said Thursday two people have died and 20 others were injured from a cold snap bringing snow and ice across northern Europe.
One of those killed slipped on a pavement and violently banged their head, authorities from the Nord region said in a statement. The other person had no fixed address and was found dead in the town of Valenciennes, the statement said.
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Young stag in the bracken is lit by sunrise in Bushy park in London, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as cold weather continues to grip many parts so of the British Isles. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Two ducks sit near a frozen fountain after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
A statue and palm tree are covered in snow after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
People shield themselves behind umbrellas during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
A woman walks in the park after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Snow covers a statue and palm tree after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Icicles hang from the Killhope Lead Mine in Durham, England, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)
A clearing vehicle drives in the city center during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
A woman walks under an umbrella during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
People hiding behind umbrellas during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
People walk in front of the Cologne Cathedral during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
The icy weather first hit Wednesday. The statement said rescue services have been called out to deal with traffic accidents, people falling in the snow and ice, flooding and other emergencies.
Across the English Channel, weather warnings were in force across the U.K., where temperatures were expected to plummet to -16 degrees Celsius (3.2 degrees Fahrenheit) in some places later on Thursday.
Manchester Airport briefly closed its runways due to heavy snow on Thursday morning before reopening. The U.K.'s weather forecasters, the Met Office, warned of more travel disruption to road and rail services in some parts, as well as potential accidents in icy areas. Snow and ice warnings were also in place for northern Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Days of snow, sleet and downpours have disrupted airports, rail lines and roads across the country leading to delays and cancellations during the busy holiday period.
Young stag in the bracken is lit by sunrise in Bushy park in London, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as cold weather continues to grip many parts so of the British Isles. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Two ducks sit near a frozen fountain after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
A statue and palm tree are covered in snow after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
People shield themselves behind umbrellas during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
A woman walks in the park after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Snow covers a statue and palm tree after early morning snow fell in the center of Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Icicles hang from the Killhope Lead Mine in Durham, England, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP)
A clearing vehicle drives in the city center during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
A woman walks under an umbrella during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
People hiding behind umbrellas during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
People walk in front of the Cologne Cathedral during heavy snowfall in Cologne, Germany, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Firefighters battled early Thursday to control a series of major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes.
Ferocious winds that drove the flames and led to chaotic evacuations have calmed somewhat and were not expected to be as powerful during the day. That could provide an opportunity for firefighters to make progress reining in blazes that have hopscotched across the sprawling region, including massive ones in Pacific Palisades and Altadena.
The latest flames broke out Wednesday evening in the Hollywood Hills, striking closer to the heart of the city and the roots of its entertainment industry and putting densely populated neighborhoods on edge during exceptionally windy and dry conditions. But only about a mile away, the streets around the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the TCL Chinese Theatre and Madame Tussauds were bustling, and onlookers used their phones to record video of the blazing hills.
Within a few hours, firefighters had made major progress on the Sunset Fire in the hills. Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott said they were able to keep the fire in check because “we hit it hard and fast and mother nature was a little nicer to us today than she was yesterday.”
A day earlier, hurricane-force winds blew embers through the air, igniting block after block in the coastal neighborhood of Pacific Palisades as well as in Altadena, a community near Pasadena that is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east. Aircraft had to be grounded for a time because of the winds, hampering firefighting efforts.
Nearly 2,000 homes, businesses and other structures have been destroyed in those blazes — called the Palisades and Eaton fires — and the number is expected to increase. The five deaths recorded so far were from the Eaton Fire.
Some 130,000 people have been put under evacuation orders, as fires have consumed a total of about 42 square miles (108 square kilometers) — nearly the size of the entire city of San Francisco. The Palisades Fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles history.
As flames moved through his neighborhood, Jose Velasquez sprayed down his family’s Altadena home with water as embers rained down on the roof. He managed to save their home, which also houses their family business selling churros, a Mexican pastry. Others weren’t so lucky. Many of his neighbors were at work when they lost their homes.
“So we had to call a few people and then we had people messaging, asking if their house was still standing,” he said. “We had to tell them that it’s not.”
In Pasadena, Fire Chief Chad Augustin said the city's water system was stretched and was further hampered by power outages, but even without those issues, firefighters would not have been able to stop the fire due to the intense winds fanning the flames.
“Those erratic wind gusts were throwing embers for multiple miles ahead of the fire,” he said.
The dramatic level of destruction was apparent in a comparison of satellite images before and after the fire.
A swath of about 250 homes in an Altadena neighborhood that had been dotted with the green canopies of leafy trees and aquamarine swimming pools was reduced to rubble. Only a few homes were left standing and some were still in flames in images from Maxar Technologies. Along a stretch of about 70 wall-to-wall homes overhanging the Pacific Ocean in Malibu, fewer than 10 appeared to be intact.
In Pacific Palisades, a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity homes, block after block of California Mission Style homes and bungalows were reduced to charred remains. Ornate iron railing wrapped around the smoldering frame of one house Swimming pools were blackened with soot, and sports cars slumped on melted tires.
More than half a dozen schools in the area were either damaged or destroyed, and UCLA has canceled classes for the week.
Another fire has hit Sylmar, a middle and working-class area on the northern edge of the San Fernando Valley that has been the site of many devastating blazes.
The main fires grew rapidly in distinctly different areas that had two things in common: densely packed streets of homes in places that are choked with vegetation and primed to burn in dry conditions.
Flames moved so quickly that many barely had time to escape. Police sought shelter inside their patrol cars, and residents at a senior living center were pushed in wheelchairs and hospital beds down a street to safety.
In the race to get away in Pacific Palisades, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and set out on foot.
The flames marched toward highly populated and affluent neighborhoods, including Calabasas and Santa Monica, home to California’s rich and famous.
Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes and Paris Hilton were among the stars who lost homes. Billy Crystal and his wife Janice lost their home of 45 years in the Palisades Fire.
“We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away," the Crystals wrote in the statement.
In Palisades Village, the public library, two major grocery stores, a pair of banks and several boutiques were destroyed.
“It’s just really weird coming back to somewhere that doesn’t really exist anymore,” said Dylan Vincent, who returned to the neighborhood to retrieve some items and saw that his elementary school had burned down and that whole blocks had been flattened.
California’s wildfire season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association.
Dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, which has not seen more than 0.1 inches (2.5 millimeters) of rain since early May.
The winds increased to 80 mph (129 kph) Wednesday, according to reports received by the National Weather Service. Fire conditions could last through Friday — but wind speeds were expected to be lower on Thursday.
President Joe Biden signed a federal emergency declaration after arriving at a Santa Monica fire station for a briefing with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who dispatched National Guard troops to help.
Several Hollywood studios suspended production, and Universal Studios closed its theme park between Pasadena and Pacific Palisades.
As of early Thursday, around 250,000 people were without power in southern California, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.
Several Southern California landmarks were heavily damaged, including the Reel Inn in Malibu, a seafood restaurant. Owner Teddy Leonard and her husband hope to rebuild.
“When you look at the grand scheme of things, as long as your family is well and everyone’s alive, you’re still winning, right?” she said.
Golden reported from Seattle and Watson from San Diego. Associated Press journalists Christopher Weber and Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles; Ethan Swope in Pasadena, California; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; Janie Har in San Francisco; Brian Melley in London; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland; and Tammy Webber in Detroit contributed to this report.
A firefighting plane makes drops over ridges as the Palisades Fire burns in the hills between Pacific Palisades and Malibu Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Topanga, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
Topanga Canyon inhabitants look on as the Palisades Fire burns in the hills between Pacific Palisades and Malibu Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Topanga, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
Embers fly from a burning structure during the Eaton fire in Altadena, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Fallon Prockiw-Kline, center, gets emotional in front of her home which was damaged by the Palisades Fire, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
Charred Buddha statues stand amidst other sculptures at burned out shop in Malibu, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
Smoke from the Palisades Fire is seen during a commercial flight to Los Angeles, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Firefighters battle the Eaton Fire as it engulfs structures Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Firefighters team up to battle the Eaton Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
The Palisades Fire burns a beach front property Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
Visitors to the Santa Monica pier look out at smoke from a wildfire in the Pacific Palisades blows over the beach in Santa Monica, Calif., on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
Beach front homes are destroyed by the Palisades Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Thick heavy smoke from wildfires shrouds downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire around a burned structure in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
The Palisades Fire burns homes on a hilltop in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Residents embrace in front of burning structures as the Eaton Fire advances Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Pedestrians help a firefighter stretch a hose as an apartment building burns, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in the Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
A statue and other structures are burned as the Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Firefighters aim a hose at the entrance to a Bank of America engulfed in flames on Lake Avenue, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in the Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Firefighters hose down a burning structure on Lake Avenue, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in the downtown Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
A resident of a senior center is evacuated as the Eaton Fire approaches Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Fire explodes out of a window of the Altadena Community Church, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in the downtown Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Homes damaged by the Palisades Fire are seen along the beach, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
The Palisades Fire burns a Christmas tree inside a residence in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Fallon Prockiw-Kline, center, gets emotional in front of her home which was damaged by the Palisades Fire, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
A wildfire-ravaged property is shown after the Palisades Fire swept through in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Thick heavy smoke from wildfires passes over the Hollywood sign in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
A firefighter battles the Eaton Fire, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Lisa Diaz hugs a neighbor outside of their homes as the Eaton Fire sweeps through the area Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
A man walks his bike among the ruins left behind by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
A resident is evacuated from a senior living facility as the Eaton Fire approaches Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
A firefighter battles the Eaton Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Kelly Kline looks out at his home damaged by the Palisades Fire, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
A burned-out car sits among rubble in the downtown Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Fire crews battle the Eaton Fire next to a fully engulfed residence, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
A man walks past a fire-ravaged business after the Eaton Fire swept through Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
The Eaton Fire burns a vehicle Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Megan Mantia, left, and her boyfriend Thomas, only first game given, return to Mantia's fire-damaged home after the Eaton Fire swept through the area, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Beach front homes are destroyed by the Palisades Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Beach front homes are destroyed by the Palisades Fire Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Water is dropped by helicopter on the burning Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills section of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
A firefighter works from a deck as the Palisades Fire burns a beachfront property Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
Firefighters work from a deck as the Palisades Fire burns a beach front property Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)
