Emma Vardy: "Every time we drive around I feel this looks like a Hollywood disaster movie"
“I don’t want to overuse the Hollywood metaphors, but every time we drive around I feel this looks like a Hollywood disaster movie – nobody could have believed we’d be looking at this until it happened.”
Those are the words of the BBC’s Emma Vardy, who has been in the thick of apocalyptic scenes reporting on wildfires devastating Los Angeles – scenes she describes as “relentless, unbelievable, exhausting”.
Formerly based in Belfast as Ireland correspondent before her career took her to LA, Emma says it has been difficult to get to grips with the enormity of an inferno that has so far claimed 24 lives and thousands of acres of property.
"A few days ago, just after Christmas, I was in Belfast seeing friends and family and having a great time,” she says. “I flew back to LA and then after a couple of days, bang – we’re into what feels like the apocalypse.
"A lot of the places I’m reporting on are places I’ve come to love; surf spots I go to, little places to hang out, some really glitzy glamorous places where I’ve taken selfies to show friends. They’re just dust and ash now.”
Speaking to Radio Ulster’s Stephen Nolan on Monday morning, she added that less than 48 hours before the fires kicked off, she was reporting from the red carpet at the Golden Globe Awards.
"One minute I was in this sequinned dress, showing off with bottles of champagne and living the dream, and then suddenly thrown into this,” she said.
"It’s an historic disaster for LA, and there are going to be some lessons to learn, whether that’s about climate change or how we prepare for fires.
“But it is impossible to know right now where the end is. This could go on for several more days.”
Forecasters have warned of more dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week.
Red flag warnings for severe fire conditions have been issued through to Wednesday, with sustained winds of 50mph and gusts in the mountains reaching 70mph.
The most dangerous day will be on Tuesday, said meteorologist Rich Thompson.
"You're going to have really strong gusty Santa Ana winds, a very dry atmosphere and still very dry brush, so we still have some very critical fire weather conditions out there," Mr Thompson said at a community meeting on Saturday night.
Los Angeles County fire chief Anthony C Marrone stated that 70 additional water trucks have now been dispatched to fire-ravaged or at-risk areas to prepare for Tuesday's gusts, while fire retardant was parachuted in to form barricades in at-risk areas on Sunday.
Fierce Santa Ana winds, which hit California in cooler months, have been largely blamed for turning wildfires that sparked last week into infernos that levelled entire neighbourhoods.
LA hasn’t seen any significant rainfall in more than eight months, meaning conditions were so dry that fires were almost inevitable – but the scale of the current disaster has shocked the world.
City fire chief Kristin Crowley has urged people to stay away from scorched neighbourhoods, saying: "There are still active fires that are burning within the Palisades area, making it extremely, extremely dangerous for the public.
"There's no power, there's no water, there's broken gas lines, and we have unstable structures. The first responders are working as quickly as possible to ensure that it is safe [for residents] to return."
Officials warned the ash can contain lead, arsenic, asbestos and other harmful materials.
About 150,000 people in Los Angeles County remain under evacuation orders, with more than 700 residents taking refuge in nine shelters.
By Sunday morning, the fires had consumed more than 62 square miles – an area larger than San Francisco.
Recent reports state a blaze in the wealthy enclave of Pacific Palisades is 11% contained, while one in the Eaton district reached 27% containment. Those two are by far the largest of the four blazes gutting Los Angeles.
Of the 24 deaths, eight of the deaths have been attributed to the Palisades fire and 16 to the Eaton fire.
At least 16 people are missing and authorities expect that number to rise.
Crews from California and nine other states are part of an ongoing response to the disaster, which involves over 1,350 fire engines, 84 aircraft and more than 14,000 personnel, including newly arrived firefighters from Mexico.