What Is the Pink Stuff Being Dropped Over the Los Angeles Fires?

The Los Angeles fires are still wreaking havoc on Southern California, and now, people are wondering about the mysterious pink stuff being dropped over them.

Viral photos captured planes emitting not just water, but clouds of the hot pink substance over the fires.

According to the New York Post, the pink stuff is a special fire suppressant that firefighters are using to get ahead of the Santa Ana winds, which were predicted to pick up again on Tuesday (Jan. 14).

The winds could kick up to 75 mph and potentially spark new fires, which is how the devastating flames got started in the first place.

READ MORE: Can Ocean Water Be Used to Put Out the L.A. Fires?

The outlet reported that the fires have displaced over 200,000 people after evacuations and at least 24 people have died due to the fires.

According to CBS News, the pink fire suppressant is commonly used in forest fires and is an "invaluable tool" to firefighters.

Several fire agencies have helped drop the special retardant in Los Angeles including the U.S. Forest Service, the Los Angeles and Ventura County fire departments and the National Guard.

The outlet also reported that the aerial fire suppressant is made up of a mixture of water, ammonium phosphate — essentially fertilizer — and iron oxide, which is added to make the retardant visible, per Daniel McCurry, a civil and environmental engineering professor at the University of Southern California.

The mixture helps "starve a fire of oxygen and slow the rate of burn by cooling and coating vegetation and other surfaces."

The outlet added that the brightly colored fire suppressant is generally safe for humans.

Perimeter, which manufactures the fire retardant used by the Forest Service, said the fire suppressants "are exhaustively tested by the USDA Forest Service and meet or exceed all health and safety standards."