Los Angeles wildfires leave 10 dead as details emerge about victims

The wildfires raging through Los Angeles County Friday have killed at least 10 as details are emerging about the victims, including one reported to have been found clutching a garden hose in his hand while trying to defend his family home of more than 50 years. 

Victor Shaw, 66, was identified by KTLA as one of the fatalities from the devastating Eaton Fire centered around the city of Pasadena. His sister Shari told the station that Victor said he wanted to stay behind Tuesday night to try to fight the flames, but a family friend said his body was discovered the next day on the side of a road with a hose. 

“They just told me that he was lying on the ground and that he looked serene, as if he was at peace,” Shari Shaw told KTLA. 

The five wildfires active in Los Angeles County on Friday – the Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, Kenneth Fire, Hurst Fire and Lidia Fire, have so far burned more than 30,000 combined acres, according to Cal Fire. 

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The largest fire – the Palisades Fire – has scorched more than 20,000 acres and is only 8% contained, officials say, while the Eaton Fire has burned more than 13,500 acres and is 3% contained.

Across the county, more than 10,000 homes and businesses have been burned. The causes of all the fires remain unknown.

“A curfew order has been established for the Palisades and Eaton Fire areas in all mandatory evacuation zones,” starting at 6 p.m. local time, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna announced Friday.

“This curfew will be strictly enforced and is being taken to enhance public safety, protect property, and prevent any burglaries or looting in the area that the residents have evacuated,” Luna added, warning that “We are not screwing around with this.”

On Thursday afternoon, the Kenneth Fire started in the San Fernando Valley just 2 miles from a school serving as a shelter for evacuees from another fire. It moved into neighboring Ventura County, but a large and aggressive response by firefighters stopped the flames from spreading.

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The Los Angeles Police Department arrested a man on Thursday in that area who was allegedly “attempting to light a fire.”

The Los Angeles Fire Department said Thursday that one of its essential aircraft, the “Super Scooper Quebec 1,” was flying in the Palisades Fire area when it was struck by a civilian drone that was not assigned to the Palisades Fire.

“The pilots were unaware that they hit the drone. It wasn’t until they landed at Van Nuys Airport that the maintenance staff noticed that there was a fist-sized hole in the leading edge of the wing,” LA County Fire Department Chief Anthony Marrone revealed Thursday, adding that the aircraft should be back into the skies on Monday following repairs.

The government has not yet released figures on the cost of the damage. 

Right now, it’s impossible to quantify the extent of the destruction other than “total devastation and loss,” Barbara Bruderlin, head of the Malibu Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce, told The Associated Press. 

“There are areas where everything is gone, there isn’t even a stick of wood left, it’s just dirt,” Bruderlin said. 

Officials on Friday also apologized after an evacuation warning was mistakenly sent to Los Angeles County residents on Thursday, prompting confusion among many who don’t live near any of the wildfires still burning in the region.

“I can’t express enough how sorry I am for this experience,” Kevin McGowan, the director of the Office of Emergency Management for Los Angeles County, said during a press conference.

“First of all, I want to clarify this is not human driven. There is no one sitting at a desk right now initiating emergency alerts. I want to restate that. Right now, as these alerts are being issued, they are not being activated or initiated by a person,” he added. “We have every technical specialist working to resolve this issue and to find the root cause.”

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office said Thursday night that it has “received notification of 10 fire-related deaths.” At least five have been reported from the Eaton Fire and two from the Palisades Fire. 

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Two of the dead in Altadena were Anthony Mitchell, a 67-year-old amputee, and his son, Justin, who had cerebral palsy. They were waiting for an ambulance to come and did not make it to safety when the flames roared through, Mitchell’s daughter, Hajime White, told The Washington Post. 

Rodney Nickerson, an 83-year-old grandfather, was also found dead in Altadena, according to CBS News. 

“We found his bones, his whole body was intact,” his daughter Kimiko said to the station, which reported that Nickerson was discovered in his bed among the rubble and ash. 

Another victim was identified by the New York Times as Erliene Kelley, a retired pharmacy technician who reportedly lived near Shaw and Nickerson. 

“She was an angel,” neighbor Terry Pyburn told the newspaper. “That’s the perfect neighbor. When you see her, you have a smile.” 

On Thursday, recovery crews also pulled a body from rubble of what was a beachfront residence in Malibu on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway, the Associated Press reported.

Fox News’ Elizabeth Pritchett, Christina Shaw, Louis Casiano and The Associated Press contributed to this report.