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CNN International: Death Toll Raises to Ten as Wildfires Rage in Los Angeles; Trump to be Sentenced in New York Hush Money Case; U.S. Supreme Court to Hear TikTok Case; Deadly Wildfires Rage on in Southern California; Israel Identifies Remains of a Hostage Recovered from Gaza; California Wildfires: Losses Estimated at $50 Billion. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired January 10, 2025 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[08:00:00]
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and this is the CNN Newsroom. Straight ahead, the nightmare continues in Los Angeles as the death toll from raging wildfires rises to ten. Officials warn that number could get worse, fueled by climate change, the fires also come after a year that has been declared the hottest on record and exceptionally dry.
Also, this morning, President-Elect Donald Trump will be sentenced in his hush money case in New York. And uncertainty in Venezuela as the country prepares to swear in Nicolas Maduro for a third term after an election win, the opposition strongly disputes.
For the fourth morning in a row, Los Angeles is waking up to scenes of devastation. Officials say at least ten lives have been lost, but the actual toll won't be known until the fires are out and the crews can go to assess all of the damage. Authorities estimate as many as 10,000 structures have already been destroyed, and four days of raging wildfires are taking a serious toll on residents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't even teach and I'm a first responder. I teach people to save lives, and I couldn't even save a house and I'm just shattered.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Apparently, I have a decent policy, so maybe I'm going to be OK. So, I'll rebuild, but I'm thinking, am I going to be anxious every time the wind blows, even after I rebuilt? Am I going to sit here and go, oh, is it going to burn down my house again and I have to start over?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Community leaders are again urging people to get out of harm's way when told to evacuate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): We are not through this by any means. We keep seeing these fires pop up in different places. We may see more before this is over. If you're told to evacuate, then get the hell out. You might think you can outrun a fire. You are not going to outrun these fires. You're just not.
KRISTIN CROWLEY, LOS ANGELES FIRE CHIEF: You look at the multiple fires. The fires keep coming. Our firefighters are working to the highest efforts. I've never seen this in my 25-year career.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Live pictures right now, thousands of acres still on fire. The burning fire is being raged and accelerated by the winds. The Palisades fire, which is already the most destructive in LA history, is only 6 percent contained at this point. Any progress in getting the fires under control depends mostly on weather conditions, which remain very treacherous.
Finally, there were some air assets that got into the air yesterday, but it all still very precarious. Police announced that they have arrested one person suspected of trying to start a fire. The LAPD has not confirmed whether the suspect had any connection to the Kenneth fire that broke out on Thursday afternoon near Calabasas. CNN's Nick Watt gives us a closer look at the devastation across the Los Angeles area.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, there's the red plane swooping in to save us.
NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sadly, a little too late for this fleeing family this morning, we found what's left of their home, nothing. Thousands of homes have been lost across the county, plus businesses and more $50 billion worth of damage. But the winds finally eased so now they can attack these flames from the air.
[08:05:00]
All last night, we heard the planes, a reassuring sound in a fire, but winds will pick up again flow through Friday night and get stronger again next week, more than 6000 personnel now fighting the worst fires in the history of this great city.
MARK PESTRELLA, DIRECTOR, LOS ANGELES COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT: Sewer water, your power system and the transportation system have all been significantly damaged.
WATT (voice-over): We know the depth of the devastation. We can see it the death toll. Well, it's just too early to tell.
SHERIFF ROBERT LUNA, LOAS ANGELES COUNTY: At one point we'll be able to do a more thorough search of these impacted areas. Some of them look like a bomb was dropped in them, where we will be able to bring in canines and other things to help us, hopefully not discover too many fatalities. That's our prayer.
WATT (voice-over): 43 acres burned in Hollywood last night. Hollywood chaos in such a tight urban environment in Santa Monica, a sunset to sunrise curfew kicked in last night as the Palisades fire threatens. So far across LA, 20 alleged looters arrested, accused of preying on houses left standing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Shame on those who are preying on our residents during this time of crisis.
WATT (voice-over): Here in Pacific Palisades, where entire neighborhoods are just gone. Arson investigators are today on the ground, and the post mortem is already underway. Did the LA Mayor's cuts to the fire department budget hamper the effort?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There were no reductions that were made that would have impacted the situation.
WATT (voice-over): And that loss of water in the hydrants here in the Palisades at the peak of the blaze, Governor Gavin Newsom visited again today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why was there no water in the hydrants Governor? Is it going to be different next time?
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): It has to be.
WATT (voice-over): But for neighborhoods like this and the people who once lived here, now what?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Oh, incredible. Nick Watt, thank you so much for that point of view. Let's bring in Stephanie Elam, who's also getting a first- hand look at what's taking place this time in Altadena, California. Stephanie, what are you hearing from people? What are you seeing?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, it's -- you know I was in the Palisades fire before coming to the Altadena fire, with the Eaton fire here, we're all in Altadena. And in both places, there are just entire blocks where every house is gone on, and some places on both sides of the road, like, take a look at this.
I'm going to step out the way a little bit so you can see that you've even got these open flames because the infrastructure is broken apart. So that's obviously some sort of gas lane. You see the chimney is still standing here in this house in Altadena.
But overall, you have some 180,000 people who have been forced to evacuate, 200,000 people who are under warning, and all of this in a very densely populated part of Los Angeles County here, and also the Palisades fire. This fire here now they've said it's over 13,000 acres that has burned the Palisades fire closed 20,000 acres.
They have some containment there. But still, when you look at the level of devastation, it's hard to wrap your mind around it. And for some people, they've lost everything. For other people, they've lost loved ones, and that makes it even worse. I want you to listen to this one woman who lost her father, and she's the one who discovered him. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIMIKO NICKERSON, FATHER KILLED IN EATON FIRE: This is where we lived our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave, and my neighbors and myself, and he said he'll be fine. I'll be here when you guys come back. And he said his house would be here. His house is here. And he was here too. He was in his bed when I found him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ELAM: Just unfathomable amount of loss and also what these people were up against when they did lose their lives, and now these loved ones trying to deal with that fact and how they move forward after that. But for all of these people, how do you start over? Where do you begin?
In the Palisades area, they already know that they even have to deal with the infrastructure has been ruined, had been damaged by this fire. And so, it's going to be more than just someone coming back out here with some two by fours and building homes again. It's going to be an entire infrastructure that's going to have to be addressed.
And just the idea of whether people want to come back and rebuild or if they're just ready to just let it go and move on. And that's some difficult decision making. And a lot of people this is, this is their retirement account. This is their savings. Were these houses that they built here? So just terrible set of circumstances here, Fred.
WHITFIELD: I mean, it really is Stephanie because, I mean, this is a testament to so many things, the speed of the fire. The Santa Ana Winds and the fact that it is targeted or hit places that people were not accustomed, accustomed to experiencing fires. I mean, we're talking about suburban and kind of urban settings, right?
[08:10:00]
So, I mean all of that, compounding the issue, and then the whole issue of insurance and whether people can pick up and start again. I mean, and you talk about decisions to make. It seems like people really don't know which way to turn.
ELAM: It's so much to take in at one time, right?
WHITFIELD: Yeah.
ELAM: And the part of the issue too, is some of these places do push back up into -- you know national parks or wild land areas. So those do get fired. In fact, where I'm standing now, the Eaton fire. If I look out this way, I can see the glow of the fire burning out into the mountains. You can't see it. It's smoky and dark out here, but it's still burning, right? And so that's part of the issue is, like some of this growth that has
been out into these areas, there's always that threat. And with the Palisades this is not something that they've lived without, but nothing has been like this, right? So, and then the winds. I was standing in those winds, I guess that was Tuesday morning. It was blowing me around Fred. Those winds were unprecedented, how strong they were.
