Firefighters race to beat LA fires as death toll hits 16, authorities had sent 395 prisoners to fight forest fires

At least 16 people were now confirmed dead from fires that have ripped through the city, leaving communities in ruins and testing the mettle of thousands of firefighters - and millions of California residents.

Over the past 24 hours, the Palisades Fire spread over an additional 1,000 acres, officials reported and consumed more homes.

 Wildfires began to spread across Los Angeles County on January 7. According to meteorologists, dry and windy weather was the cause of the rapid spread of the fires. Evacuation notices were sent to nearly 180,000 residents. The fire has destroyed more than 12,300 structures in the region, with damage estimated in the tens of billions of dollars.

 Earlier, The Washington Post, citing the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, reported that the state authorities had sent 395 prisoners to fight forest fires. The newspaper noted that most of them were persons who had committed minor crimes.