Los Angeles wildfire: DC-10 tanker drops 10,000 gallons of fire retardant to restrain devastation, video goes viral

The pilot tracks the rising smoke and releases a red-coloured fire retardant onto the hilltop.

New Delhi | January 12, 2025 05:50 PM IST

3 min read

Firefighters are receiving assistance from both Mexico and Canada (Image source: @CollinRugg/X)

Firefighters are launching a full-scale effort to contain the largest and most deadly wildfire threatening Los Angeles and spreading into other cities. Aerial crews have been tirelessly dumping water and fire retardant on the raging hills in a bid to control the Palisades Fire, which has now spread an additional 1,000 acres, and is encroaching on Brentwood.

Amid several viral videos of destruction, a footage of a DC-10 air tanker dropping around 10,000 gallons of fire retardant to slow down the fire in Brentwood has emerged on social media. The video shows the devastating sight of the burning hills and their gradual spread toward Brentwood. The pilot tracks the rising smoke and releases a red-coloured fire retardant onto the hilltop.

Sharing the video, X user Collin Rugg, who has been actively sharing credible developments about the Los Angeles wildfire, wrote, “The DC-10 tanker has dropped about 10,000 gallons of fire retardant to slow the fire in Brentwood. The move was made after there was a “significant” flare-up last night regarding the Palisades fire. The DC-10 was manufactured by McDonnell Douglas and is somewhat comparable to the Boeing 747 but is able to use shorter runways. The Palisades Fire grew by 1,000 acres overnight.”

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The death toll has surged to 16, with 11 fatalities linked to the Eaton Fire and five to the Palisades Fire. Firefighters are receiving assistance from both Mexico and Canada, with air tankers and hundreds of additional personnel deployed to help combat the fires, BBC News reported.

Los Angeles county sheriff Robert Luna stated that cadaver dogs are assisting 40 search and rescue teams as they search through destroyed neighbourhoods. The death toll is anticipated to increase once thorough house-to-house searches are completed.

Several celebrities including Paris Hilton, Mandy Moore, Billy Crystal, Cary Elwes, James Wood, Spencer Pratt-Heidi Montag, and Melissa Rivers, lost their homes to the Los Angeles wildfire.

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