Wildfires which have killed at least 11 people and left behind widespread destruction in Los Angeles County continue to burn Friday while more strong winds and challenging weather conditions are forecasted for the coming days.

Economic losses and damage are an estimated $135 billion and $150 billion, the costliest fire event in US history. Hurricane Helene in six states last fall caused up to $250 billion in damage.

The devastating blazes have killed at least 11 people and incinerated more than 12,000 structures since Tuesday.

Another natural disaster, another series of false claims from President-elect Donald Trump. For years, Trump has littered his statements on California wildfires and other disasters with inaccurate assertions.

As wildfires spread across Southern California this week, President-elect Donald Trump cast blame on state leaders and called for California Gov. Gavin Newsom to resign in a series of Truth Social posts.

Multiple major wildfires are leaving a trail of destruction and death in the Los Angeles area.A handful of wildfires that kicked up Tuesday, powered by high winds and dry conditions, have exploded in size.

In 2019, the number of homeowners’ policies in California that were not renewed jumped by more than thirty per cent. In 2023, two giant insurers, State Farm and Allstate, announced that they would stop writing new policies for various forms of property insurance in California.

The Los Angeles wildfires could threaten California’s already unstable insurance market, which carriers have been fleeing as disasters multiply.