Friday, 10 January - She sets the city on fire

Good morning, it’s Friday, 10 January. In your Squiz Today…

• The worst fires in Los Angeles’ history continue to wreak havoc

• A couple of big events to do with Donald Trump and Nicolás Maduro for your news radar

• And no one does it like the Greeks (a salad, that is…)

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

Is what one swimmer in China’s ‘ice city’ Harbin says of the growing trend of winter swimming, which is said to bring “health and joy”. It involves diving into a hole cut in the frozen Songhua River. One to consider for your New Year’s resolutions…

Apocalyptic scenes in the City of Angels

The Squiz

Firefighters in Los Angeles are battling the largest blaze in the city’s history - the Pacific Palisades fire - as the death toll from the city’s 5 blazes rises to at least 5 people. The Palisades fire has burned through 17,000 acres and remains uncontained. There’s been catastrophic damage across Los Angeles County, with entire neighbourhoods razed to the ground. Thousands of homes and other ‘structures’ (which local authorities say include cars as well as businesses, sheds and outbuildings) have been lost (including some owned by celebrities…), and some of LA’s most iconic locations, including Sunset Boulevard and the Hollywood Hills have been affected.

How has this happened?

It’s a good question because these wildfires have kicked off in the middle of winter in what’s supposed to be California’s ‘wet’ season… What’s made them particularly bad is that much of the state’s south and east is in drought and has received less than half the normal rainfall between October and now, making LA and its surrounds extremely dry. Add to that the famous Santa Anas winds (known as the ‘devil’s winds’) stirring up this week, and you have a recipe for disaster… Yesterday, LA Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said she hadn’t seen anything like the wind conditions in her 25 years on the job. 

What now?

Meteorologists say winds will likely pick up again and could change direction, pushing fires into different residential areas. That’s not good news for the overwhelmed firefighters on the ground… Cal Fire says that, aside from 2 smaller blazes where they’re starting to get things under control, the others are 0% contained. Fire crews are dealing with dwindling water supplies and stretched resources all around. President Joe Biden has cancelled a trip to Italy and has visited LA to make a Major Disaster declaration - that directs “life-saving and life-sustaining” federal resources to California. He says “we’re doing anything and everything, and as long as it takes to contain these fires ... it's going to take time”.

Your fresh market update…

At the Squiz, we’re all about giving you the useful stuff. So, we’ve teamed up with Woolies to share their top weekly fruit and veg picks. Here’s what to grab this week:

💜 Croc Egg Plums - Hard to believe but they're sweeter than we are, and they stay firm when they’re ready to eat

🍑 Nectarines - This stone fruit is thriving this year, so there’s no better time to grab one

🍅 Truss tomatoes - Pro tip: go for the plump ones with firm skins. A salad necessity...

Squiz the Rest

A thumbs up from a rescued hiker

Hadi Nazari - the 23yo medical student found safely in Kosciuszko National Park after going missing for nearly 2 weeks - has given his thanks to those involved in efforts to find him. In a statement delivered via NSW Police, Nazari said "I would like to thank all of the emergency services personnel for their tireless work searching for 13 days in tough conditions". He's also grateful to the public and his family and friends “for their well wishes and prayers”. Despite being remarkably unscathed by the ordeal, Nazari was dehydrated, and for that, he’s still receiving treatment in Cooma Hospital. Once he's released, he'll return home to Melbourne, where his sister Zahra said she'll "make him whatever he likes to eat".

Down to the wire…

After several failed attempts to halt tomorrow morning’s scheduled sentencing over his hush money felony conviction, President-elect Donald Trump has asked the US Supreme Court for a last-minute intervention. Trump’s lawyers have repeatedly argued that Trump is immune from prosecution - that’s a reference to a Supreme Court ruling last year. For its part, the Supreme Court has ordered prosecutors to file a response ASAP, which legal eagles say is a sign that a ruling will likely be made before the scheduled sentencing hearing. And if it does halt proceedings, there's a good chance Trump won’t ever be sentenced. Stay tuned…

Crisis in Caracas

The capital of Venezuela will see the swearing-in of re-elected President Nicolás Maduro tonight, but there's debate over whether he was elected at all. Maduro took over in 2013 (after President Hugo Chavez's death) and leads an authoritarian government with a poor human rights record. The US has called him a dictator... Last year's election in July was much the same - opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez says he won twice as many votes as Maduro - and independent observers agree. Gonzalez fled the country but has promised to return in time for Maduro’s swearing-in - analysts say that will focus attention on Maduro’s legitimacy with significant protests planned.

A rocky start to the AFL year

The men’s season starts in March, but the headlines are rolling out early… Yesterday, former Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein said it’s “obvious” the proposed stadium for the new Tassie Devils team won’t be ready for their debut season. The stadium issue dominated last year’s state election - the AFL said no stadium, no team, and the government will have to pay a financial penalty if it isn’t done in time. Last week, a report by economist Nicholas Gruen found the budget is waaay short of what’s needed, but the government says it’s all systems go... And Carlton President Luke Sayers says he’s investigating how a photo of a man’s unmentionables made it onto his X account - he says he’s been hacked. And it’s still 56 days until some actual footy happens…

A whisky business decision…

And while we’re on the Apple Isle, some of the state’s whisky distilleries are taking unique approaches to getting their beverages to stand out… It’s made from fermented grain and stored in barrels while it ages, and producer Michael Briggs says storing his barrels away on an abalone boat for a year gives the drink a nice brine-y quality. Another producer Peter Bignell smokes his whisky grains with, umm, burning sheep dung, which doesn’t give it a dungy quality, luckily - more of a smoky quality that is very popular with aficionados. With 80-plus distilleries in Tassie alone, competition amongst the producers is fierce, so it’s important to try and do something that’s never been dung done before…

Wanna be in the Saturday Squiz?

The cabana debate is on like Donkey Kong… Some people are using their cabana to reserve beach space early in the morning - they leave and then come back to claim a stellar spot. So we want to know…

Friday Lites - 3 things we liked this week

The Aussie streamer Stan has a handy habit of dropping a season of TV on New Year's Day - this year, it was season 2 of Black Snow, which stars Travis Fimmel as a troubled detective investigating cold case murders. It's an easy watch with lots of homegrown talent.

One of the great things about a new year is all the things we have to look forward to - here are some thorough lists of the movies, TV shows, albums, books, video games and sporting events to get excited about, so go on - start putting some of these release dates on the calendar…

If you're after the perfect summer salad to serve alongside a weekend barbecue, look no further than the Greeks… This one from Instagram chef Marinie Georgallides is fresh, zesty and easy. Perfect with lamb kebabs - or one of the savoury Greek pastries on her page…

Squiz the Day

Friday

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and 2 co-defendants are due to deliver guilty pleas for their roles in al-Qaeda's 9/11 attacks on America that claimed nearly 3,000 lives - Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

The Lorne Mountain to Surf - Lorne, Vic

ABS Data Release - Monthly Household Spending Indicator, November

Margaret Thatcher Day (Falkland Islands)

World Hindi Day

An 80th birthday for singer Rod Stewart (1945) 

Anniversary of:

• the establishment of the frontrunner to the United Nations, the League of Nations, as the Treaty of Versailles took effect (1920)

• the deaths of Coco Chanel (1971) and David Bowie (2016)

Saturday

2.00am (AEDT) - President-elect Donald Trump is due to be sentenced following his conviction last May on charges involving an alleged scheme to hide a hush money payment to adult actor Stormy Daniels - New York

Pier to Pub open water swim - Lorne, Victoria

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to be sworn in for a new term of government, despite serious doubts about the validity of last year’s official election results - Caracas

International Parity at Work Day

International Thank You Day

A birthday for horse fan Daryl Braithwaite (1949) and singer/swimmer Cody Simpson (1997)

Anniversary of:

• the US Surgeon General Dr Luther Terry publishing a landmark report saying smoking caused lung cancer (1964)

• the death of New Zealand mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (2004)

• author JK Rowling completing the final Harry Potter book in an Edinburgh hotel room (2007)

Sunday

10.30am (AEDT) - The Women's Ashes Series begin with the first ODI: Australia v England - Sydney/broadcast live on Kayo

10.45am (AWST) - Australian road cycling championships: Elite women's road race - Perth/broadcast live in SBS

11.00am (AEDT) - The Australian Open tennis grand slam begins - Melbourne/broadcast live on 9Now

2.30pm (AWST) - Australian road cycling championships: Elite men's road race - Perth/broadcast live in SBS

3.00pm (AEDT) - Softball Australia National Championships Gilley’s Shield final - Waverley, Victoria

Quitters Day - the most likely day for people to give up on their New Year's resolutions…

Birthdays for author Haruki Murakami (1949), Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (1964), singer Zayn Malik (1993)

Anniversary of:

• Josef Dzhugashvili first using the pseudonym Stalin ("man of steel") in a letter penned to the newspaper Social Democrat (1913)

• the founding of Timely Comics (later Marvel) by New York publisher Martin Goodman (1939)

• the death of British crime novelist Agatha Christie (1976)

• an earthquake in Haiti that killed more than 200,000 people (2010)