Stay home and off the roads, officials warn during Southern California wildfires

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) — Amid a spate of devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, city officials on Wednesday had a simple message for Angelenos: Stay home if you can.

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell pointed out that the blazes, including the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades and the Woodley Fire near the Sepulveda Basin, have worsened a problem “that we’re used to dealing with here”: traffic.

“This will be an extra test of gridlock in many places due to people not having access to their normal routes,” he said. “I would say that if you have an ability to be able to stay out of the Westside today to telecommute or to work from home, as long as your employers are good with that, to take advantage of that. The air is very tough today, for particularly those who are challenged medically, if you can stay home and work from there, I would recommend that.”

Los Angeles City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson went even further, advising Angelenos in all parts of the city to remain at home if possible, both for their safety and for the benefit of first responders.

“If you can stay off the roads, please do so,” he said. “I live in South L.A., a long way away from the fires. Visibility is less than one block because of the smoke. So if there is not a good reason for you to be on the roads, we ask that you leave the roads as open as you possibly can to the public safety professionals that have to do their work and will lead us out of the crisis that we face here in the city of Los Angeles and the county of Los Angeles today.”

McDonnell also expressed support for the army of first responders working to limit fire damage and keep people safe and encouraged the public to continue being cooperative.

“We will continue to support our partners on the fire service and our other law enforcement partners, but to all in the public who are watching this, a sincere thank you to all of you for your cooperation and your patience as we all get through this together,” he said.

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) — Amid a spate of devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, city officials on Wednesday had a simple message for Angelenos: Stay home if you can. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell pointed out that the blazes, including the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades and the Woodley Fire near the Sepulveda […]