Much has been made of apparent water shortages reportedly leaving firefighters hamstrung in their battle to contain wildfires. 

Critics have claimed some hydrants were empty in parts of LA, which has led to criticism of the authorities, including California’s governor – see our 22.54 post for a bit more on that.

Gavin Newsom has now released a letter – to the LA Department of Water and Power and LA County Public Works – calling on state officials to get to the bottom of the “deeply troubling” reports.

He said it is likely water issues “impaired” the firefight.

Yesterday, a Sky News team filmed the moment a concerned resident confronted Mr Newsom about the state’s response to the fires

One minute into the video below, she asks: “Why was there no water in the hydrants, governor?”

Joe Biden’s deputy energy secretary David Turk offered an explanation yesterday, putting it down to a power and pressure issue.

Hydrants need power in order to pump water up, he said, but during times of disaster power lines are cut in order to curb the risk of power surges and line breakdowns.

Another death linked to wildfires confirmed

The number of people believed to have died during the Los Angeles wildfires has risen to 11.

The LA County Medical Examiner’s office reports five of those victims died in the Palisades fire and six in the Eaton outbreak.

Officials have indicated that figure could climb as crews gradually access burned-down areas.

Yesterday, Robert Luna, the county sheriff, said he cannot be sure how many people have died in the fires – adding they need more time to verify each number.