The Eaton Fire was 73% contained Saturday, up overnight from 65%, with firefighters continuing to extinguish hot spots in steep, inaccessible canyons near Winters Creek, Mt. Lowe, and Mt. Wilson while crews and water dropping helicopters worked in unison to extinguish any remaining heat in those areas, Cal Fire reported.
“A total of 60 miles of control lines have been established around the fire’s perimeter, including 8 miles of hand line,” according to a statement released by Cal Fire Friday night. “Tactical patrols and mop up continue throughout the communities along the southern flank of the fire.
“Infrastructure work is in progress, with efforts focused on restoring utilities and critical services to support repopulation and long-term recovery in affected areas.”
A virtual community meeting will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday, with fire officials providing an update on the fire situation, answering questions and discussing recovery. The meeting will be streamed on the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/@LosAngelesCountyFD.
Questions may be emailed to 2025.eaton@firenet.gov before the meeting.
The fire had burned 14,117 acres in Altadena and Pasadena since breaking out Jan. 7, left 16 dead, destroyed 8,690 structures and damaged 938 others, according to Cal Fire.
Mandatory evacuation orders remained in place for thousands of residents in the Eaton Fire area, although on Friday afternoon, but were lifted in areas southwest of Altadena Drive, north of New York Drive and east of Allen Avenue; an area east of Lake Avenue and south of Mendocino Lane; and south of Church Canyon Place, east of Old Toll Road and west of Sunset Ridge Road.
On Thursday afternoon, residents along Canyon Crest Road into The Meadows east of El Prieto Road were permitted to return home. On Wednesday afternoon, evacuations were lifted in a large area stretching from the western to southern flank of the fire. On Tuesday afternoon, orders were lifted for an area south of Canyon Crest Road and west of Lincoln Avenue in the Altadena area, according to the sheriff’s department.
On Monday, evacuations were lifted in the Altadena Kinneloa Mesa community, in an area south of Heights Road to New York Drive, and east of Outpost Lane to Sierra Madre Villa.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Thursday he anticipates the bulk of the evacuation orders in the fire area will remain in place for at least another week, likely longer.
Cal Fire reported that detailed damage inspection maps for properties within the Eaton Fire footprint showing damaged or destroyed homes — as well as homes that are not damaged or destroyed — can be found at fire.ca.gov/incidents/2025/1/7/eaton-fire.
Los Angeles County officials said its damage assessments can be viewed at recovery.lacounty.gov/eaton-fire. They will be updated daily in real time.
There were 2,782 personnel assigned to the firefighting effort as of Friday evening, Cal Fire reported.
Seven firefighters have suffered undisclosed injuries fighting the blaze, according to Cal Fire.
SoCalGas officials said they had temporarily shut off natural gas service to 16,700 customers last Saturday in the Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre communities as a safety measure. As of Thursday afternoon, the utility had restored service to 961 of those customers. The Gas Co. has established an information booth for residents at the Santa Anita Mall, Gate 8, at 400 S. Baldwin Ave. in Arcadia to provide information for customers.
An evacuation center was set up at the Pasadena Convention Center at 300 E. Green St. The Humane Society is on-site to accept small pets for boarding. Small animals were also being accepted at Baldwin Park Animal Care Center at 4275 Elton St., while large animals were accepted at Industry Hills Expo Center at 16200 Temple Ave., Industry.
A curfew was in effect nightly from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in the mandatory evacuation areas, with only firefighters, law enforcement and utility workers allowed in those zones. Luna said Monday more than 30 people had been arrested in both the Eaton and Palisades burn areas, some for alleged looting and others for offenses including narcotics or weapons possession. Two people were arrested for allegedly operating a drone in the area.
The Pasadena Unified School District, which includes Altadena, closed its campuses through at least Friday. The Glendale Unified School District reopened Monday with the exception of Rosemont Middle School, where a tree fell on campus.
The entire Angeles National Forest has been closed for public safety and the protection of natural resources through at least Jan. 24.
The Eaton Fire was reported about 6:20 p.m. Jan. 7 in the area of Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive in the hills above Altadena amid hurricane force Santa Ana winds, according to Cal Fire. The cause of the fire has not been determined.
Among the structures destroyed in the fire was the Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center. The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation reported that the Eaton Canyon Nature Center, Farnsworth Park’s Davies Community Center — listed on the National Register of Historic Places — the Altadena Golf Course Clubhouse and adjacent buildings were also destroyed. Also destroyed was The Bunny Museum in Altadena.