Understanding How Massive the L.A. Fires Are

The scale of the infernos devastating Southern California is almost unimaginable.

Just this month, more than two dozen fires have broken out across the region, cumulatively burning more than 50,000 acres, according to CAL FIRE, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, as of the evening of Thursday, Jan. 23.

That’s an area equivalent to nearly 40,000 football fields or more than 300 golf courses. It’s greater than the size of Washington, D.C., which is about 43,700 acres, and more than three times the size of Manhattan, N.Y., which is only about 14,600 acres.

The Palisades fire, which broke out on Jan. 7 and remains only 75% contained as of Jan. 23, was the state’s first major fire of the year and the biggest with an incident area of over 23,000 acres. It has wreaked havoc on the Los Angeles County coastal community of Pacific Palisades that’s home to many celebrities as well as surrounding neighborhoods.

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The Eaton fire, which broke out later the same day and is centered further east in L.A. around the city of Altadena, has an incident area of over 14,000 acres.

And the Hughes fire, which broke out on Jan. 22 near Castaic Lake north of downtown L.A., has an incident area of over 10,000 acres.

A number of smaller fires have broken out across L.A. and in nearby counties like Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura, as well as further south in the state in San Diego County.

In total, according to CAL FIRE, more than 16,000 structures have been destroyed and at least 28 people have been killed—so far. Driven by a confluence of factors including fierce winds, the flames have continued to expand.

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Still, these California conflagrations, while on track to be the costliest in U.S. history, are far from the largest, even in the state—a record held, per CAL FIRE, by the 2020 August Complex fire that torched more than a million acres.