The month of January isn’t typically when to expect wildfires in California. Historically, wildfire season occurs between June and September, when the hills and brush scattered around the state are dry and more susceptible to going up in uncontrollable flames. The dryness of these conditions usually depends on how much rainfall the state receives during previous winters, among other factors. But the wildfires ablaze in Los Angeles right now, whose total destruction remains to be seen, show all bets are off when it comes to what defines wildfire season.
At the time of writing this, officials were responding to at least four fires in the Los Angeles region — the Auto, Eaton, Hurst and Palisades fires, which have spread to a combined 38,000 acres and counting. The death toll is at least 24 people.
