Sixteen people have been killed in the Los Angeles wildfire. An amputee and his son with cerebral palsy were among those killed. The father was found at his son’s bedside.

One victim told a relative that he did not want to evacuate. He died trying to fight the blaze that consumed his home of more than 50 years.

Another victim, an 85-year-old woman, refused to leave her home as the fast-moving Palisades Fire approached, preferring instead to stay behind with her beloved pets.

A former child star from Australia also was among those who died, as well as a Malibu resident and surfer who was called a “magnet for people.”

According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, five of the 16 deaths appear related to the Palisades Fire near the Southern California coast. Another 11 deaths have been attributed to the Eaton Fire, which raged east of Los Angeles.

The complete death toll won’t be clear until it’s safe for investigators to enter neighborhoods where there are downed power lines, gas leaks and other hazards, according to authorities.

The Death toll from the devastating California wildfires has risen to eleven, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner said Friday.

According to Fox News, the number of persons confirmed dead is expected to rise as the incident moved into a fifth consecutive day on Saturday.

It was gathered that over 12,300 homes and buildings have gone up in flames since the incident started early in the week

Fresh evacuations were ordered Friday night in some of the affected parts, including Mandeville Canyon.

A company that monitors electrical activity, Whisker Labs, says faults along the Los Angeles power grid skyrocketed in the same areas where three of the major wildfires are currently raging.

The chief executive of the company, Bob Marshall told Fox News Digital that the company recorded sharp increases in faults in the hours prior to the Eaton, Palisades and Hurst Fires.

“Faults are caused by tree limbs touching wires or wires blowing in the wind and touching.

“That creates a spark in a fault, and we detect all of those things,” Marshall explained, adding that he can’t definitively say whether one of those faults caused a fire.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dispatched a top-tier delegation to Qatar in an effort to finalise a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group, his office announced on Saturday night.

The delegation includes Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet director Ron Bar, retired IDF Major General and hostage negotiator Nitzan Alon, and Netanyahu’s political advisor Ophir Falk.

The decision followed a high-level situation assessment meeting chaired by Netanyahu, with Defense Minister Israel Katz, senior Israeli security officials, and representatives from both the Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration also in attendance.

Earlier in the day, Netanyahu met with Trump’s incoming US Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Jerusalem.

Hamas sources indicated on Saturday that a ceasefire agreement was “completed” and pending Netanyahu’s final approval.

Israeli officials, however, remain cautiously optimistic, with Channel 13 news quoting two sources involved in the negotiations as describing the discussions as showing “general cautious progress.”

The Qatar-hosted talks have been an essential point in efforts to secure the release of hostages and establish a temporary ceasefire amid ongoing tensions.