Hey there from CNN, I'm Krista Bowe with 5 Things You Need to Know for Thursday, January 9th. Apocalyptic scenes have emerged across Los Angeles County, where five major wildfires are destroying thousands of homes and businesses. At least five people have died in the blazes, and tens of thousands of people have had to flee. California fire official Brent Pascoe told CNN this morning firefighters are finally getting some relief from yesterday's extraordinary high winds that fanned flames and tossed embers for miles.
It was just trying to fight this fire like in a hurricane, with fire all around you. What a welcome sight. What this fire so desperately needed was a break in these winds so that we can actually get some containment now on this fire. But the forecast shows intense gusts could be back later today.
Many Los Angeles residents are reeling with the reality that their homes and neighborhoods are destroyed. Zibi Owens is from the Palisades. Everyone is just so raw, numb, in shock. All of our friends, everyone we know has lost their homes.
It's like the most surreal thing. The magnitude of this and the devastation emotionally is just, I can't even, in our whole town, everything is gone. Everything. All the stores and restaurants.
For more information about how you can help Los Angeles area wildfire victims, go to CNN.com slash impact or text wildfires to 707070 to donate. It wasn't just the wind making it hard for firefighters battling the flames. Yesterday, hydrants were running dry in Pacific Palisades, causing outcry from residents. State water officials say the issue was about delivery, not availability, because the system couldn't refill local water tanks fast enough to keep up with the demand.
They also said the location of the neighborhood caused problems, because the Palisades sits at the end of the system, where it's harder to keep up water pressure. And the LA Department of Water and Power said the wind stopped helicopters from being able to airdrop water, putting more pressure on the ground systems. We immediately implement our contingency plans to provide water trucks to support our firefighters. America is saying a final goodbye to former President Jimmy Carter.
It was honored this morning at a state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral. All living U.S. presidents attended the service. Jason Carter spoke about his grandfather's legacy.
His political life and his presidency for me was not just ahead of its time, it was prophetic. He had the courage and strength to stick to his principles even when they were politically unpopular. Carter's body will now be taken back to his hometown of Plains, Georgia, where his family will hold their own private service to say goodbye. He'll then be buried in the grounds of his home, alongside his late wife, Rosalyn.
President-elect Donald Trump is fighting his conviction in the New York hush money case, asking the Supreme Court to halt the sentencing set for tomorrow. And he's running out of options. The state's court of appeals rejected his request today to postpone tomorrow's sentencing. State prosecutors have filed their argument with the high court.
CNN's John Fritz is here to break it down. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg basically told the Supreme Court to stay out of this messy fight over the scheduling of Trump's sentencing in the hush money case. Now, among other things, Bragg pushed back on this idea from Trump that the sentencing could harm or slow down the transfer of power. The sentencing, Bragg said, will likely only take an hour, and Trump can appear virtually if he chooses.
Now, the Supreme Court is going to move quickly on this, probably ruling before Friday morning. Scientists discovered a dinosaur highway in England. More on that next. Scientists uncovered a dinosaur highway in Oxfordshire, England, with nearly 200 footprints from the middle Jurassic period.
Around 100 volunteers from the University of Birmingham and the University of Oxford collaborated this past June for one week, excavating the tracks and recording as much information as possible about the expansive site. Spanning more than 492 feet, or 150 meters, the researchers say this is the largest known dinosaur track site ever found in the UK, offering a rare glimpse into prehistoric life. All right, that's all for now. I'm Christobo, and our next episode drops at 3 p.m.
Eastern. Till next time.