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A wildfire fueled by high winds swept through the affluent Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades on Tuesday, burning homes and prompting the city to issue an evacuation order for 30,000 people.
More than 2,900 acres burned in the hills around Palisades, a wealthy coastal community with some of the most expensive real estate in the United States, the Los Angeles Fire Department said Tuesday. This is the reason the fire unknown
Smoke darkened the sky in the area as winds reached 60mph. Gusts were expected to accelerate overnight and reach gusts of up to 100mph, the strongest for Southern California in at least a decade.
About 13,000 structures are at risk in the Palisade, home to Hollywood stars such as Tom Hanks and James Woods, fire officials said. California Governor Gavin Newsom said, “Too many structures [are] already destroyed.”
Newsom declared a state of emergency, as did Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. President Joe Biden, who was in California to dedicate national monuments, pledged federal aid to reimburse the state for its disaster response.
After sunset, Santa Monica Palisades issued an evacuation order for an area closest to the fire, warning residents of an “immediate threat to life.”
Another large fire broke out in Altadena, about 30 miles east of Pacific Palisades. The blaze, which burned about 400 acres, also prompted evacuations.
The roads that snake through the canyons of Pacific Palisade quickly filled with traffic after the fire broke out Tuesday morning, as residents rushed to evacuate. Many cars were also abandoned as drivers fled on foot towards the coast, witnesses said.
The fire department sent trucks to remove abandoned cars to improve access to the fire.
“We were evacuated three times [from previous fires] But it’s the worst we’ve seen,” said Susan Vash, who evacuated Tuesday afternoon and is staying with family in Santa Monica.
He has lived in the Mandeville Canyon area of the Palisades since 1998. “Every time this happens we say we have to move, but we never do.”
The fire threatened the Getty Villa and burned some hillside vegetation. However, the museum’s president said that the art collection and museum staff are safe.
Helicopters and “super scooper” planes dropped water on the fire, although strong winds proved a problem for aircraft. Utility companies shut off power to more than 8,000 homes to prevent live electrical wires from increasing the risk of fire.
The fire in Pacific Palisades is believed to have started around 10.30am. Evacuira said it spread quickly, forcing parents to rush to the school and pick up their children. Some of those who fled said they could not be sure if the houses they left behind were still standing.
It could take days for firefighters to bring the blaze under control and longer before residents are allowed to return home, fire officials said.
The National Weather Service warned of “life-threatening downpours,” which hastened the spread of fires across a parched landscape that has seen little rain in months.
Fire officials warned that the winds would only worsen overnight. Los Angeles County Fire Department Chief Anthony Marrone said, “Know that we’re not out of danger.”
