The fire began on January 7, 2025, at 6:15 p.m. PST in Eaton Canyon.[6] It rapidly expanded to over 1,000 acres (400 ha) by 12:07 a.m., fueled by a strong Santa Ana wind event,[7] with wind gusts of up to 100 mph (160 km/h) reported at the nearby Mount Lukens Truck Trail north of La Cañada Flintridge.[8] By 6:30 a.m., the fire had further grown to over 2,227 acres (901 ha), with 0% containment.[7]
The fire continued to grow quickly, and by 10:36 a.m., the fire had grown to over 10,600 acres (4,300 ha), still with 0% containment.[9]
1,527 firefighting personnel have been assigned, along with 79 engines, 8 bulldozers, and 2 water tenders as of 5:00 p.m., January 9.[10]
Cause
Residents of a home abutting Eaton Canyon who were some of the first people to report the fire to authorities told Pasadena Now that the fire began in proximity to electrical towers above the canyon.[6] According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), the cause of the fire is under investigation.[5]
The fire approximately 90 minutes after it began as viewed from the Eaton Canyon reservoir basin, already obscured by heavy smoke
As of 4:00 a.m. PST on January 8, 52,314 residents and 20,890 structures had been placed under evacuation orders, with a further 46,847 residents and 18,051 structures placed under evacuation warnings. Numerous homes and cars in Altadena were destroyed; up to "90 to 95 percent" of Altadena residents had been evacuated as of 7 a.m..[7]
As of 8:10 a.m. on January 8, one firefighter injury had been reported,[11] over 200 structures had been destroyed,[12] and two civilians had died in the fire, along with "a number of significant injuries."[7] Later in the afternoon, sheriff Robert Luna reported five civilian fatalities in a press conference, and the estimated number of evacuees was raised to over 100,000.[13][7]
By the afternoon of January 8, over 100 animals had been received at the Pasadena Humane animal shelter, many of which had received burn injuries.[14]
By January 10, a 6pm-6am curfew was implemented for the evacuated areas of Altadena and roadblocks into the area were put in place by the California National Guard.[23]
Starting on January 10,[24] thousands of volunteers and donators convened at the Santa Anita Park parking lot to assist those displaced and impacted by the fire.[25]
Structures destroyed
About 7,000 structures had been destroyed as of January 10.[26] The fire destroyed residential sections of Altadena that were settled by African-Americans who moved west in the 1920s and 1930s, during the Great Migration, and had created a working and middle-class neighborhood that had persisted for over a century.[27]
Among the historic or culturally significant structures destroyed are:
^Haskell, Josh; Hayes, Rob; Garcia, Sid; et al. (January 8, 2025). "Major brush fires burning in SoCal amid powerful windstorm". ABC7 Eyewitness News. Retrieved January 8, 2025. Five people have now died in the Eaton Fire, which continues to burn out of control near the Altadena and Pasadena areas.
