Los Angeles officials push back repopulation timeline for evacuation zones

Hundreds of thousands of residents were hoping to get access to their homes as early as Thursday, however, that won't be happening.

LA County and city officials had previously said evacuees would have the chance to go back into evacuations zones, but because of the excessive damage to areas hit particularly hard by the fires, like the Pacific Palisades, they are now changing course.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Robert Luna, the Sheriff for the County of Los Angeles, said he understands that people are frustrated and desperate to see their home and the community. However, safety and preservation of life is the highest priority, especially with the threat of spot fires sparking up again.

"We did lift two evacuation zones," said Luna. "One in the Palisades, another in Eaton. Our repopulation conversations do continue with every meeting, but please remember, just because there isn't a fire, the chiefs have made it very clear that we're still having some challenges with the wind, so we've got to keep a close eye on things."

He also said there is a lot of work that has to be done before people can come back in.

"In talking to our partners at Public Works and utilities, there are things you can't see that are underground," said Luna. "There's a lot of hazards. So those are things are going to have to be evaluated hour by hour, day by day, so that we can make sure that when we start allowing our community members back to their homes, that they are safe. Safety is always absolutely number one priority."

David Ortiz, a PIO with the LA City Fire Department, says there are too many hazards in areas like the Pacific Palisades. Things like debris from dilapidated buildings, live wires, and broken glass that are wide spread in damaged areas can cause serious harm or even death.

"We have to make sure that there's not going to be any collapsing structures, like walls or chimneys that are still standing, houses that are partially standing, tall buildings that are still standing or partially standing," said Otiz. "Beyond that, you got trees that are hollowed out on the inside that appear to be standing but can snap at any moment. You got telephone poles with wires down that even though power is not inside this area. Some may still have a charge, so people may not be looking for those hazards."

He also explained that there is no cell service in the area, which could cause an emergency situation to become even more dangerous.

"We want to make sure that it's safe before we allow people to return to their homes," said Otiz. "And we want to make sure we have everything they need, like electricity, cell phone service in case they need 911, they might suffer a heart attack or have a medical emergency or an injury while they're out here inspecting their property. So all those services have to be restored before we can bring people in."

The county has created a new webpage to help evacuees with questions they may have when it comes to repopulation. That link can be found here.

News Channel Three had a crew along Sunset Boulevard, and they saw dozens of crews working to clear debris, and fix gas lines. Although progress is being made, there's still a long way to go. So far no date has been determined for repopulation.

Stay with News Channel Three for the very latest.