Vietnamese people in the US describe scenes ‘like the end of the world’ due to the Los Angeles forest fire

“High winds appeared in my area a few days ago. The night the fire broke out, the wind was so terrible that it shook my house, and there was a lot of dust outside,” said Nguyen Hoang Lan, a student at El Camino College in Los Angeles, recounted the time a forest fire broke out on January 7 in Pacific Palisades, California, USA, about 30 km from where she lives.

The next morning, Lan went out early and immediately coughed, her eyes stinging because of the burning smoke spreading in the strong wind. She described the surrounding scene as “no different from the end of the world”, when smoke from forest fires gathered into giant black clouds that covered the sky, and ash flew everywhere.

“Ash and dust cling to vehicles and in the garden. The scene is really scary and gloomy, making my heart pound, but people still go to school and work. At night, I can still smell the faint smell of smoke,” Lan said. .

According to scientists, the extremely strong Santa Ana wind, a warm and dry northeast wind that blows from southern California to the coastal area, is the factor that caused this forest fire to flare up fiercely and spread very quickly. Winds with speeds of up to 160 km/h cause fires to rise and spread faster, beyond the control of the fire department.

Since January 7, the three Pacific Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires and a number of smaller fires have formed a “firestorm” triangle with a total area of ​​more than 11,600 hectares, damaging or completely burning more than 10,000 fires. construction, causing more than 180,000 people to evacuate in Los Angeles. US President Joe Biden described this as the “fastest spreading and most devastating” forest fire disaster in California history.

Nguyen Hoang Thach Thao, a law officer living in Westwood, about 8 km from the Pacific Palisades fire, said on January 10 that the wind had decreased in intensity, but the situation was still tense after three days of raging fires.

Thao said the air in Westwood is heavily polluted because of dust from forest fires. Schools in the area announced closures, while officials issued warnings advising people to wear masks and not leave their homes.

“My company also sent an email allowing employees to take time off work, or to go to the company’s headquarters for refuge if their homes were burned or affected,” Thao said.

The dust situation was so bad that on the evening of January 8, Thao decided to drive out of Westwood city to Laguna Beach in the south to avoid polluted air.

Hoai Anh, a graduate student at UC Riverside, near where the Eaton fire broke out, said the air quality index (AQI) in Rosemead, where she lives, increased to 154 from the usual level of about 30. Electricity was also cut off when the fire broke out.

Los Angeles firefighters said strong winds and dry weather will complicate efforts to extinguish the fire next week. The US National Weather Service also issued a similar warning, but said the winds had calmed down enough for firefighting helicopters to assist.

Phuc Ngo, an engineer in neighboring Orange County, said the area where he lives was not affected by the wildfire, but huge black smoke could be clearly seen rising from afar.

Even though he has lived in the US for 9 years, this is the first time Ngo has witnessed such large-scale devastating forest fires in the winter in southern California. Previous wildfires occurred mainly in the summer, in the northern part of the state. “I’m very sad and pray for those who suffered heavy damage,” Ngo said.

According to AccuWeather data, the fires raging in Los Angeles are devastating some of America’s most expensive real estate areas, where homes have an average value of more than $2 million each. Material damage and economic losses could reach 52-57 billion USD.

Mr. Ngo said his friends who are indigenous and Vietnamese have started to open online funds to donate to support those affected. Social networks are also filled with posts sharing shelter, medical services, and free food.

Ms. Thao in Westwood also said that many of her American friends who lost their homes in the fire have received support from the community. Many restaurants, hotels, and taxi applications have launched programs to support people affected by the fire.

After two days of “refuge” in Laguna Beach, Thao plans to return to Westwood tomorrow to donate clothes and necessities to friends and deliver food to firefighters.

Wildfires often occur in the western United States, but scientists say climate change is negatively impacting this phenomenon. Southern California has experienced two decades of drought, followed by two years of exceptionally heavy rain, causing vegetation to thrive and burn easily.

Many local people also feel more clearly the warnings of the scientific community that extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and intensity.

“Maybe climate change is affecting everything. The world is in a bad situation and we need to do more,” said Debbie Collins, a Los Angeles store owner.