Whoopi Goldberg claimed the destruction caused by the deadly Los Angeles fires was 'nobody's fault' and simply blamed 'the wind.'
The 69-year-old old actress-turned-commentator spoke about the fires - which have so far killed 24 people - on ABC's The View as California officials face widespread criticism over the response.
'There was a fire catastrophe in California. It had to do winds - the winds move things and sparks move things,' Goldberg told the panel.
'It doesn't matter how much water you have if 900,000 buildings go up at the same time.
'Having lived in California, having lost every house save for one that we ever lived in, I take great offense at pointing fingers.
'You should be pointing fingers about, how can we help. It's too soon to be saying, oh it's Gavin's fault, it's nobody's fault.
'It's like us taking seriously that there are magic lasers in the sky that direct the weather. That doesn't work, that doesn't happen...
'We don't control Mother Nature. Mother Nature doesn't give a damn what we want.
'Mother Nature does what she does and if you're in the way, this is what happens, and California is chock full of people.'
Whoopi Goldberg has blamed 'the wind' for the deadly Los Angeles fires and said the widespread destruction they have caused is 'nobody's fault'
The 69-year-old old actress-turned-commentator spoke about the fires, which have so far killed 24 people, with fellow co-hosts on ABC talk show The View .
A fire fighting helicopter drops water as the Palisades fire grows
Extreme dry weather conditions due to a prolonged drought, dry vegetation and powerful Santa Ana winds that reached up to 80 mph in some areas this week created the 'perfect storm' for the fires.
Two people have also been arrested for allegedly lighting fires in the county too, including Ruben Montes, 29, who was detained for arson on Sunday in Irwindale, roughly 16 miles away from Altadena, where the deadly Eaton Fire continues to rage.
Mexican national Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva, was also taken into custody after allegedly being caught on video walking with a yellow blowtorch before he was confronted by residents in Calabasas, west of Beverly Hills.
Goldberg was ridiculed on X for her commentary, with people posting images showing one of the alleged arsonists beside the caption 'Mother Nature'.
Others argued that the fires were 'preventable'. 'The devastation could have been vastly reduced if Democrats like Newsom and Bass actually did their job,' one person said.
Meanwhile, furious Los Angelinos have blasted local politicians for a shocking litany of failures which have exacerbated the deadly wildfires currently razing the city.
Complaints range from the mayor being AWOL in Africa to fire hydrants running out of water and electricity to power cables being left on to fuel the flames.
Businessman and mayoral candidate Rick Caruso blasted local officials for failing to refill the water supplies despite knowing that strong winds which could whip up wildfires were on the way.
'The (firefighters') hands have been tied. They can't fight a fire without water and the resources that are needed. Everybody knew these winds were coming,' Caruso told Fox 11.
'The other question has to be, were all the things in place to try to mitigate the damage here?
The 69-year-old old actress-turned-commentator spoke about the fires, which have so far killed 24 people, with fellow co-hosts on ABC talk show The View
Meteorologists warned residents in fire-ravaged evacuation zones that winds reaching 70mph will pick up on Sunday night and last to Wednesday, heightening the risk for fires to spread even further across southern California
'The real issue to me here is two-fold. We've had decades to remove the brush in these hills that spreads so quickly, and the second is, we've got to have water.
'My understanding is the reservoir was not refilled in time, in a timely manner to keep the hydrants going... this is basic stuff, this isn't high science here.
'It's all about leadership and management that we're seeing a failure of, and all of these residents are paying the ultimate price for that.'
Gov. Gavin Newsom said more than 1,400 firefighters are tackling the blazes
Audio of communications between firefighters confirms that first responders ran out of water in some areas.
'We have no water, it is... we're doing the best we can up there. We are making sure that people are out of the way,' one firefighter can be heard saying.
Lawyer and Pacific Palisades native Rachel Darvish, 49, whose home has likely been engulfed by the flames, questioned why officials like Mayor Karen Bass did not plan ahead despite knowing 'critical' weather conditions were on the way.
'I don't know if our house is still there, what I can tell you is I have a photo of the neighbor's house which is gone,' Darvish told Fox News.
'We have questions. I know where I am right now, but I don't know where my mayor was when this was happening. I do know now where she was.'
'Nobody told us where to go or what to do. I didn't even have an evacuation order. I love the fire department, I love our fire personnel (but) we need more, where were they?'
'You ask about emotional toll - I can't even answer that question yet... I don't know,' Darvish added.
Speaking about Bass, she continued: 'For someone to be in charge of my town - where were you? Where were you when the decisions should have been made about how to get in and out of places.'
The devastating Los Angeles fires have burned over 12,000 properties and killed at least 11 people, with officials warning the death toll is 'expected to rise' as recovery efforts continue
The weather warning also prevents locals from returning home to inspect the damage
Pictured: The Palisades Fire burns near the beach during a windstorm in LA on Tuesday
Darvish said getting out of the Palisades was 'unbelievable' as traffic stacked up as far as the eye could see on a one-lane highway out of the city.
'There should have been some forethought,' she said. 'People were getting out of their cars to run away from the fires.
'We see warzones on TV, we see fires on TV, this is the first time this little community which sort of keeps to itself and is happy, has had to face something like this.'
'I'm very happy to say that I'm okay,' she added. 'But after what we've been through, I don't know why I have to be in a hotel room, I don't know why this had to happen to this extent.'
Meteorologists gave plenty of warning that a 'recipe for fire' was on track to strike LA as far back as last week.
Rich Thompson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, warned that the region was extremely dry for the time of year because 'we haven't had any significant rain for months'.
'The fuels are at near-critical levels in terms of moisture content,' Thompson told the LA Times at the weekend. 'That's a recipe for fire.'
Writing on Truth Social, incoming President Donald Trump blasted California Governor Gavin Newsom for allegedly encumbering the water supply.
'Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way,' Trump wrote.
'He wanted to protect an essentially worthless fish called a smelt, by giving it less water (it didn’t work!), but didn’t care about the people of California.
'Now the ultimate price is being paid. I will demand that this incompetent governor allow beautiful, clean, fresh water to FLOW INTO CALIFORNIA! He is the blame for this. On top of it all, no water for fire hydrants, not firefighting planes. A true disaster!'
