California Today: Firefighting Pilots Face High-Pressure Job: ‘It Gets a Bit Scary’

Today's top stories from California.

January 15, 2025, 9:31 a.m. Eastern time By Conor Dougherty The built-in bookshelves in my Studio City home have two rows dedicated to works about California, three if you count a California fiction section that's mostly L.A. noir. As a native Californian and Golden State history buff now raising two children in Los Angeles, I've read probably two million words about the goings-on of this city. But until last week, I never considered L.A. home. That's because I grew up in the Bay Area and identify so strongly as a Northern Californian that I've carried that identity with me no matter where I live. I voted absentee while attending college in San Diego. During my decade in New York, I read far more about San Francisco politics (which were especially bonkers back then) than anything happening in "the city." The story I told myself was that those other places were waypoints on the way back to where I'm from. Something about collective trauma has a way of focusing the mind on where you are. Last Wednesday, my wife and I hosted a pizza dinner for friends and neighbors whose power was out. The party broke up when the Watch Duty app, which tracks wildfires, informed us that the Sunset fire put our neighborhood in the evacuation zone. Everyone left with their children in tears to prepare go bags, and an hour later, we were driving to a hotel. Thankfully, everything was fine. We have spent the days since explaining to our children the importance of being ready to go, and delivering toys and clothes to people who've lost everything. I cover housing for The Times, and I recently told my editor that I'm now on the "rebuilding L.A. beat." The story is urgent as well as personal. I've moved enough times to know that there's no point in declaring any place my forever home. And while I'm not quite ready to call myself an Angeleno, and while I'll always root for the Giants, this part of the state is a part of me now in a way that it wasn't a week ago. It's one thing to read about history, but it's something else to live it. Today's Top Story Loren Elliott for The New York Times Firefighting Pilots Face High-Pressure Job: 'It Gets a Bit Scary' The people flying planes and tankers involved in dousing blazes face hot, sweaty, turbulent conditions — and the risk that fire retardant won't land where it's needed. Read more More California News More Americans Than Ever Are Living in Wildfire Areas. L.A. Is No Exception. Fierce winds and months of drought set the conditions for the catastrophic wildfires in Los Angeles, but the growth of housing in fire-prone areas also played a major role. Economic Toll of Los Angeles Fires Goes Far Beyond Destroyed Homes The ongoing disaster will affect residents' health, local industries, public budgets and the cost of housing for years to come. Palisades and Eaton Fires May Not Be Fully Extinguished for Weeks The size of the huge blazes, along with difficult weather conditions and the emergence of smaller fires, have extended firefighters' timelines. "It's going to be a slow, arduous process," one official said. Ventura County Braces for Dangerous Fire Conditions Through Wednesday Although the National Weather Service downgraded the severity of its forecast on Tuesday, forecasters expect higher wind gusts on Wednesday that could lead to "explosive fire growth." Shattered in the Fire: A Historic Black Haven For Black residents, Altadena represented something more than suburban living. It was a foothold in generational prosperity. In Parts of Los Angeles, Life Carries On but Is Hardly Normal While many Angelenos have been devastated by the fires, others in the sprawling city have had to balance helping out with "normal life." As the Eaton Fire Still Burns, Locals Gather Seeds to Regrow In Altadena, a network of home gardeners answer the call to build a free "library" of plant seeds. California Withdraws Some Requests for Tighter Climate Rules State regulators said the measures would probably have been rejected by the Trump administration and that they would focus on homegrown legal strategies instead. Local Conditions Look up the heat index in your area using The Times's heat tracker. See active fires using The Times's wildfire tracker. Today's Recipe Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich. Sheet-Pan Japchae By Eric Kim 30 minutes Makes 4 servings Play a Game The Mini Crossword Solve this bite-sized puzzle in just a few minutes. 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