The incumbent met with police, fire and emergency management officials in Los Angeles.
US President Joe Biden canceled his last foreign office trip to Rome and the Vatican because of the California wildfires. This was stated in a statement by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, AP reports.
The announcement of the cancellation of the three-day trip came hours after Biden left Los Angeles after meeting his first great-grandchild, who was born Wednesday to his oldest granddaughter, Naomi.
In Los Angeles, Biden met with police, firefighters and emergency management officials battling wildfires in the region and approved a major disaster declaration for California. It would provide federal funding for temporary housing and home repairs and low-cost loans to cover losses of uninsured fire-damaged property. It also provides additional financial assistance to state and local governments to cover fire suppression and recovery costs.
There are currently 7,500 firefighters trying to put out the fire. As a result of the fires, 400 thousand people were left without electricity. Almost 1000 buildings were burnt. It is said that more than 100 thousand people have been forced to evacuate from Eaton, Hurst and the elite area of Pacific Palisades.
According to preliminary estimates, the damage caused by forest fires in the region ranges from 52 billion to 57 billion dollars.
Biden is scheduled to fly on Jan. 9 after delivering a farewell speech to former President Jimmy Carter in Washington. During a three-day visit to Rome and the Vatican, Biden is scheduled to meet with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, as well as Pope Francis.
It was previously reported that fires in southern California were destroying homes and forcing thousands of people to flee. A state of emergency was declared in Los Angeles as the fire continued to spread rapidly.
Fire in Los Angeles: rescuers could not stop the fire
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.