Water Runs Short as LA Wildfires Burn Out of Control

Crews battling multiple wildfires that raged across Los Angeles on Wednesday were up against a near-perfect storm: intense wind, low humidity and, most troubling for residents, inadequate supplies of water to contain the blazes.

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Los Angeles authorities said their municipal water systems were working effectively but they were designed for an urban environment, not for tackling wildfires.

On Wednesday, at least three major blazes burned in LA county communities simultaneously, including a fire in the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood, an area west of downtown LA dotted with multimillion-dollar celebrity homes built along steep canyons.