Firefighters battle devastating Los Angeles wildfires as winds calm somewhat
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Firefighters battled early Thursday to control major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes.
Ferocious winds that drove the flames and led to chaotic evacuations have calmed somewhat and were not expected to be as powerful during the day. That could provide an opportunity for firefighters to make progress reining in blazes that have hopscotched across the sprawling region, including massive ones in Pacific Palisades and Altadena.
The latest flames broke out Wednesday evening in the Hollywood Hills, striking closer to the heart of the city and the roots of its entertainment industry and putting densely populated neighborhoods on edge during exceptionally windy and dry conditions. But only about a mile away, the streets around the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the TCL Chinese Theatre and Madame Tussauds were bustling, and onlookers used their phones to record video of the blazing hills.
Within a few hours, firefighters had made major progress on the Sunset Fire in the hills. Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott said they were able to keep the fire in check because “we hit it hard and fast and mother nature was a little nicer to us today than she was yesterday.”
A day earlier, hurricane-force winds blew embers through the air, igniting block after block in the coastal neighborhood of Pacific Palisades as well as in Altadena, a community near Pasadena that is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east. Aircraft had to be grounded for a time because of the winds, hampering firefighting efforts.
Nearly 2,000 homes, businesses and other structures have been destroyed in those blazes — called the Palisades and Eaton fires — and the number is expected to increase. The five deaths recorded so far were from the Eaton Fire.
Some 130,000 people have been put under evacuation orders, as fires have consumed a total of about 42 square miles (108 square kilometers) — nearly the size of the entire city of San Francisco. The Palisades Fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles history.
As flames moved through his neighborhood, Jose Velasquez sprayed down his family’s Altadena home with water as embers rained down on the roof. He managed to save their home, which also houses their family business selling churros, a Mexican pastry. Others weren’t so lucky. Many of his neighbors were at work when they lost their homes.
“So we had to call a few people and then we had people messaging, asking if their house was still standing,” he said. “We had to tell them that it’s not.”
In Pasadena, Fire Chief Chad Augustin said the city’s water system was stretched and was further hampered by power outages, but even without those issues, firefighters would not have been able to stop the fire due to the intense winds fanning the flames.
“Those erratic wind gusts were throwing embers for multiple miles ahead of the fire,” he said.
The dramatic level of destruction was apparent in a comparison of satellite images before and after the fire.
A swath of about 250 homes in an Altadena neighborhood that had been dotted with the green canopies of leafy trees and aquamarine swimming pools was reduced to rubble. Only a few homes were left standing and some were still in flames in images from Maxar Technologies. Along a stretch of about 70 wall-to-wall homes overhanging the Pacific Ocean in Malibu, fewer than 10 appeared to be intact.
In Pacific Palisades, a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity homes, block after block of California Mission Style homes and bungalows were reduced to charred remains. Ornate iron railing wrapped around the smoldering frame of one house Swimming pools were blackened with soot, and sports cars slumped on melted tires.
Flames flared through the night, illuminating the ragged ridge of the Santa Monica Mountains above Pacific Palisades. Homes continued to burn, but unlike the previous night, when a fierce wind blew embers sideways, breezes were light and sparks were mostly drifting upward.
The main fires grew rapidly in distinctly different areas that had two things in common: densely packed streets of homes in places that are choked with vegetation and primed to burn in dry conditions.
Flames moved so quickly that many barely had time to escape. Police sought shelter inside their patrol cars, and residents at a senior living center were pushed in wheelchairs and hospital beds down a street to safety.
In the race to get away in Pacific Palisades, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and set out on foot.
More than 300 patients and residents of nursing homes and other care facilities were evacuated after the blazes this week, according to data from the California Department of Public Health.
The flames marched toward highly populated and affluent neighborhoods, including Calabasas and Santa Monica, home to California’s rich and famous.
Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes and Paris Hilton were among the stars who lost homes. Billy Crystal and his wife, Janice, lost their home of 45 years in the Palisades Fire.
“We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away,” the Crystals wrote in the statement.
In Palisades Village, the public library, two major grocery stores, a pair of banks and several boutiques were destroyed.
“It’s just really weird coming back to somewhere that doesn’t really exist anymore,” said Dylan Vincent, who returned to the neighborhood to retrieve some items and saw that his elementary school had burned down and that whole blocks had been flattened.
California’s wildfire season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association.
Dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, which has not seen more than 0.1 inches (2.5 millimeters) of rain since early May.
The winds increased to 80 mph (129 kph) Wednesday, according to reports received by the National Weather Service. Fire conditions could last through Friday — but wind speeds were expected to be lower on Thursday.
President Joe Biden signed a federal emergency declaration after arriving at a Santa Monica fire station for a briefing with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who dispatched National Guard troops to help.
Several Hollywood studios suspended production, and Universal Studios closed its theme park between Pasadena and Pacific Palisades.
As of early Thursday, around 250,000 people were without power in southern California, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.
Several Southern California landmarks were heavily damaged, including the Reel Inn in Malibu, a seafood restaurant. Owner Teddy Leonard and her husband hope to rebuild.
“When you look at the grand scheme of things, as long as your family is well and everyone’s alive, you’re still winning, right?” she said.
Golden reported from Seattle and Watson from San Diego. Associated Press journalists Christopher Weber and Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles; Ethan Swope in Pasadena, California; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; Janie Har in San Francisco; Brian Melley in London; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland; and Tammy Webber in Detroit contributed to this report.
Hollywood Hills blaze rapidly expanding, fire chief says
A fire official says a blaze that broke out in Hollywood Hills is "rapidly expanding" after a mandatory evacuation order was issued in the area following the spread of the wildfires in Los Angeles.
California fire chief David Acuna told the BBC there had been "zero progress" in containing the fires because of high winds and dry conditions.
"The wind has been blowing consistently at 60-100mph (95-160km/h) since yesterday morning," Acuna said. "It actually blew harder last night."
At least five fires are currently active across Los Angeles, with five people confirmed to have been killed.
Wind speeds have dropped to about 30mph, but Acuna said "it is still significant and because there are a lot of open areas it is extremely dangerous".
More than 130,000 people have already had to evacuate, and the homes of a number of celebrities - including Paris Hilton and Billy Crystal - have been destroyed.
The first fire began on Tuesday in the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood, near Malibu, with others subsequently breaking out across the north of the city.
As of 20:15 local time (04:00 GMT), four fires in the areas of the Palisades, Pasadena, Sylmar, and the Hollywood Hills covered more than 27,000 acres (42 sq miles; 109 sq km) and were 0% contained, according to the LAFD.
One fire in the Acton area had been partially contained, while two others had been completely contained.
The fire in the Hollywood Hills - a residential neighbourhood overlooking the historic Hollywood area of the city - began at around 18:00 local time on Wednesday.
Less than two hours later, much of the heart of Hollywood was blanketed with thick smoke, and the tops of the palm trees that line its streets were barely visible.
People used sweatshirts to cover their faces to help them breathe, while others - clearly surprised by the fire - wore only pyjamas. Many carried bags and suitcases, talking on their phones as they made plans for where to go.
Many of the roads near the fire - including Hollywood Boulevard, home to the Hollywood Walk of Fame - were gridlocked with traffic. Some people even drove on the wrong side of the road as they tried to get out of the area.
- Follow live: New wildfire sweeps through Hollywood Hills
- In maps: Thousands of acres on fire in LA
- What role is climate change playing?
Resident Anna Waldman told the BBC she had set out to walk her dog but smelled smoke almost instantly when she went outside.
She went back inside and, looking out her back windows, saw fire, and watched as it moved quickly through the Hollywood Hills, coming to within a block of her home.
She packed what she could: food, clothes, blankets, food for her three small dogs.
"I can't believe this," she said in exhaustion, pulling down her face mask.
Makayla Jackson, 26, and her two-year-old son, Ramari, had been evacuated from a homeless shelter that was in danger of burning, and now stood on the street waiting for a ride to a high school where help was being offered to people.
"They just told us to get out and go," she said.
By Wednesday night Sunset Boulevard, the famous strip in West Hollywood, lay in ruins, according to reports in the LA Times.
Local residents told the newspaper banks, cafes and supermarkets they had frequented for decades were completely destroyed.
Michael Payton, store director of the Erewhon supermarket chain, said the shop, famous for its patronage by Los Angeles A-listers, had survived but that the area was levelled.
"The whole Palisades is done," he told the newspaper, "The whole town is done. This is complete devastation."
Firefighters tackling the blazes have experienced water shortages and have had to resort to taking water from swimming pools and ponds.
Officials said three separate one-million-gallon tanks were full before the fires began, but that the elevation of the fires meant water couldn't move quickly enough to hydrants in the affected areas.
The city also doesn't typically see fires of this magnitude - the Palisades blaze is already the most destructive in its history - and its systems are designed for urban use, not fighting wildfires.
Los Angeles wildfires spread to Hollywood as 100,000 ordered to evacuate
LOS ANGELES, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Raging wildfires surrounding Los Angeles spread to the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday, after other fires in the area killed at least five people, destroyed hundreds of homes and stretched firefighting resources and water supplies to the limit.
More than 100,000 people were ordered to evacuate as dry, hurricane-force winds hindered firefighting operations and spread the fires, which have burned thousands of acres (hectares) since they began on Tuesday.
"This firestorm is the big one," Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told a press conference after rushing back to the city, cutting short an official trip to Ghana.
A new fire broke out in the parched Hollywood Hills on Wednesday evening, Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told a press conference, forcing more evacuations and raising the number of wildfires burning in Los Angeles County to at least six.
Four of them were 0% contained according to state officials, including a pair of major conflagrations on the eastern and western flanks of the city that continued to grow as night fell on Wednesday.
In between, the so-called Sunset Fire in Hollywood Hills scorched 50 acres (20 hectares) on Wednesday, Cal Fire said. Helicopter crews and ground teams appeared to be making progress impeding its rapid advance.
The L.A. Fire Department issued an evacuation order for people in an area within Hollywood Boulevard to the south, Mulholland Drive to the north, the 101 Freeway to the east and Laurel Canyon Boulevard to the west - all iconic addresses for the entertainment industry.
Within that area is the Dolby Theater, where the Oscars are held. Next week's Oscar nominations announcement was already postponed by two days because of the fire, organizers said.
Though relatively small, the Sunset Fire burned just above Hollywood Boulevard and its Walk of Fame. It would need to cross the 101 Freeway to endanger the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory further up in the hills.
Nearby, a structure fire claimed at least two homes and spread to brush in Studio City, live television footage showed. More than 50 firefighters extinguished the fire with no injuries reported, the L.A. Fire Department said.
On the west side of Los Angeles, the Palisades Fire consumed 15,832 acres (6,406 hectares) and hundreds of structures in the hills between Santa Monica and Malibu, racing down Topanga Canyon until reaching the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday.
A home reportedly belonging to Hollywood actors Leighton Meester and Adam Brody was one of the buildings destroyed.
Aerial video by KTLA television showed block after block of smoldering homes in Pacific Palisades, the smoky grid occasionally punctuated by the orange blaze of another home still on fire.
To the east, in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, the Eaton Fire claimed another 10,600 acres (4,289 hectares), another 1,000 structures, and killed at least five people, officials said.
Three people had been arrested for looting, law enforcement officials said.
Private forecaster AccuWeather estimated initial damage and economic loss at more than $50 billion.
"We're facing a historic natural disaster. And I think that can't be stated strong enough," Kevin McGowan, director of emergency management for Los Angeles County, told a press conference.
Even though forecasters said winds would subside briefly on Wednesday night, so-called red flag conditions were expected to remain until Friday.
Horses and other large animals found shelter from the wildfires at a college equestrian center that opened its doors to horses, alpacas, llamas and even pigs, whose owners were under evacuation orders.
"I think they sense the fire and so I really had to lead them in a way that they understood that they were being taken somewhere safe," said Jaye Riedinger, 37, a creative director from Topanga, who left her home with her mustang horses.
Nearly 300,000 homes and businesses lost power in Los Angeles County, down from nearly 1 million earlier on Wednesday, according to PowerOutage.us. School was canceled throughout Los Angeles County at least through Thursday.
The scale and spread of the blazes stretched exhausted firefighting crews beyond their capacity.
Firefighters from six other states were being rushed to California, while an additional 250 engine companies with 1,000 personnel were being moved from Northern California to Southern California, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone told a press conference.
Water shortages caused some hydrants to run dry in upscale Pacific Palisades, officials said.
"We pushed the system to the extreme. We're fighting a wildfire with urban water systems," Janisse Quinones, chief executive of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, told a press conference.
Pacific Palisades relies on three tanks that hold about a million gallons (3.78 million liters) each, and the demand for water to fight fires at lower elevations was making it difficult to refill water tanks at higher elevations, she said.
By Wednesday afternoon, all three of those tanks and all 114 reservoirs throughout the city were refilled, Quinones said in a later press conference.
The fires struck at an especially vulnerable time for Southern California, which has not seen significant rainfall for months.
Then came the powerful Santa Ana winds, bringing dry desert air from the east toward the coastal mountains, fanning wildfires while blowing over the hilltops and down through the canyons.
President Joe Biden, who declared the fires a major disaster, joined California Governor Gavin Newsom at a Santa Monica fire station to get a briefing on firefighting efforts.
In his final days as president before handing off to President-elect Donald Trump on Jan. 20, Biden canceled an upcoming trip to Italy in order to focus on directing the federal response to the fires, the White House said.
Hollywood Hills fire breaks out as deadly wildfires burn out of control across Los Angeles area
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A fast-moving fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday night, threatening one of Los Angeles’ most iconic spots as firefighters battled to get under control three other major blazes that killed five people, put 130,000 people under evacuation orders and ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to inland Pasadena.
The Sunset Fire was burning near the Hollywood Bowl and about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The streets around Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and Madame Tussauds were packed with stop-and-go traffic as sirens blared and low-flying helicopters soared by on their way to dump water on the flames. People toting suitcases left hotels on foot, while some onlookers walked toward the flames, recording the fire on their phones.
Winds eased up some Wednesday, a day after hurricane-force winds blew embers through the air, igniting block after block, and hundreds of firefighters from other states have arrived to help, but the four fires burning out of control showed the danger is far from over.
More than half a dozen schools in the area were either damaged or destroyed, including Palisades Charter High School, which has been featured in many Hollywood productions, including the 1976 horror movie “Carrie” and the TV series “Teen Wolf,” officials said. UCLA has canceled classes for the week.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said air operations were dousing flames. She warned they still faced “erratic winds,” though not like Tuesday evening, when aircraft had to be grounded and much of the destruction occurred.
In Pasadena, Fire Chief Chad Augustin said between 200 and 500 structures have been damaged or lost from the Eaton Fire that started Tuesday night.
He said the city’s water system was stretched and was further hampered by power outages, but even without those issues, firefighters would not have been able to stop the fire due to the intense winds fanning the flames.
“Those erratic wind gusts were throwing embers for multiple miles ahead of the fire,” he said.
On the Pacific Coast west of downtown Los Angeles, a major fire leveled entire blocks, reducing grocery stores and banks to rubble in the Pacific Palisades, a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity homes and memorialized by the Beach Boys in their 1960s hit “Surfin’ USA.”
The Palisades fire was the most destructive in the Los Angeles history, with at least 1,000 structures burned.
The scope of the destruction was just becoming clear: Block after block of California Mission Style homes and bungalows were reduced to nothing but charred remains dotted by stone fireplaces and blackened arched entryways. Ornate iron railing wrapped around the smoldering frame of one house. The apocalyptic scenes spread for miles.
Swimming pools were blackened with soot, and sports cars slumped on melted tires.
As flames moved through his neighborhood, Jose Velasquez sprayed down his family’s Altadena home with water as embers rained down on the roof. He managed to save their home, which also houses their family business of selling churros, a Mexican pastry. Others weren’t so lucky. Many of his neighbors were at work when they lost their homes.
“So we had to call a few people and then we had people messaging, asking if their house was still standing,” he said. “We had to tell them that it’s not.”
Beyond the burned areas, residents worked wearing N95 masks, unable to escape the toxic smoke wafting over huge sections of the city.
The flames marched toward highly populated and affluent neighborhoods, including Calabasas and Santa Monica, home to California’s rich and famous.
Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes and Paris Hilton are among the stars who said Wednesday they lost homes.
Billy Crystal and his wife Janice lost their home of 45 years in the Palisades Fire.
“We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away,” the Crystals wrote in the statement.
In Palisades Village, the public library, two major grocery stores, a pair of banks and several boutiques were destroyed.
“It’s just really weird coming back to somewhere that doesn’t really exist anymore,” said Dylan Vincent, who returned to the neighborhood to retrieve some items and saw that his elementary school had burned down and that whole blocks had been flattened.
The fires have consumed a total of about 42 square miles (108 square kilometers) — nearly the size of the entire city of San Francisco.
Flames moved so quickly that many barely had time to escape. Police sought shelter inside their patrol cars, and residents at a senior living center were pushed in wheelchairs and hospital beds down a street to safety.
In the race to get away in Pacific Palisades, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot.
California’s wildfire season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association.
Dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, which has not seen more than 0.1 inches (2.5 millimeters) of rain since early May.
The winds increased to 80 mph (129 kph) Wednesday, according to reports received by the National Weather Service. Forecasters predicted wind gusts of 35-55 mph (56 to 88 kph) that could rise higher in the mountains and foothills. Fire conditions could last through Friday.
President Joe Biden signed a federal emergency declaration after arriving at a Santa Monica fire station for a briefing with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who dispatched National Guard troops to help.
Several Hollywood studios suspended production, and Universal Studios closed its theme park between Pasadena and Pacific Palisades.
As of Wednesday evening, more than 456,000 people were without power in southern California, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us.
Several Southern California landmarks were heavily damaged, including the Reel Inn in Malibu, a seafood restaurant. Owner Teddy Leonard and her husband hope to rebuild.
“When you look at the grand scheme of things, as long as your family is well and everyone’s alive, you’re still winning, right?” she said.
Golden reported from Seattle and Watson from San Diego. Associated Press journalists Christopher Weber and Eugene Garcia in Los Angeles, Ethan Swope in Pasadena, John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, Jeff Martin in Atlanta, Janie Har in San Francisco, Brian Melley in London, Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, Sarah Brumfield in Cockeysville, Maryland, and Tammy Webber in Detroit contributed to this report.
In maps: Thousands of acres on fire in LA
Wildfires are raging in several areas of Los Angeles, with high winds and extremely dry conditions fuelling their progress across thousands of acres of land.
Firefighters are so far unable to contain them, with one fire official telling the BBC on Thursday that they are still rapidly expanding.
The largest fire, in the Pacific Palisades area where many celebrities live, is the most destructive fire in the history of Los Angeles. More than 1,000 buildings have been destroyed.
It's a rapidly changing situation - these maps and pictures chart how the fires have spread, where they are located and what they look like from space.
On Wednesday, a fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills area, overlooking Hollywood.
Many of the roads near the fire were blanketed with thick smoke and Hollywood Boulevard, home to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was gridlocked with traffic as people tried to leave.
Five fires continue to grow in the Los Angeles area:
- Palisades fire: The largest active fire is burning between Santa Monica and Malibu. Burnt area: more than 17,000 acres. At least 30,000 people evacuated.
- Eaton fire: Second largest fire burning north of Pasadena. Burnt area: more than 10,000 acres. At least five deaths reported.
- Hurst fire: To the north east of the city. Burnt area: 850 acres.
- Lidia fire: Reported in the hills north of Los Angeles. Burnt area: 350 acres.
- Sunset fire: Reported in the historic Hollywood Hills area near many famous landmarks, including the Hollywood sign. Burnt area: 50 acres.
Two fires have been contained:
Woodley fire: Small fire reported in local parkland. Burnt area: 30 acres.
Olivas fire: Small fire first reported in Ventura county about 50 miles (80km) east of Los Angeles. Burnt area: 11 acres.
- Follow latest updates on the LA wildfires
- What's the latest on the fires, and what caused them?
- Watch: Smoke billows as thousands evacuate in LA
- Timelapse shows rapid spread of Palisades wildfire
- Watch: Inside a neighbourhood totally lost in inferno
- Pacific Palisades: The celebrity LA area ravaged by wildfire
The map above shows how rapidly the Palisades fire spread, intensifying in a matter of hours. At just after 14:00 on Tuesday it covered 772 acres and within four hours it had approximately tripled in size.
It now covers more than 17,000 acres and thousands of people have been forced to evacuate the area, as more than 1,400 firefighters try to tackle the blaze.
To give an idea of the size of the Palisades fire, we have superimposed it on to maps of New York and London.
As you can see by 23:00 PST, 8 January, (07:00 GMT, 9 January), it was comparable in size with an area stretching from Clapham to Greenwich in the UK's capital, or with large areas of lower Manhattan and Queens.
Another indication of the scale of the Palisades fire comes from Nasa's Earth Observatory.
The images captured on Tuesday show a huge plume of smoke emanating from California and drifting out to sea.
The Palisades fire is not the only one to have a devastating effect on neighbourhoods of Los Angeles.
Theses images show the extent of the destruction caused by the Eaton fire in the neighbourhood of Altadena.
The Jewish Temple in Pasadena was destroyed by the Eaton fire. The Centre's website says it has been in use since 1941 and has a congregation of more than 400 families.
Fires in Southern California kill at least 5, scorch Los Angeles area as thousands evacuate: Live Updates
At least five fires across the Los Angeles area, including one in Hollywood Hills, have scorched more than 45 square miles and put roughly 179,000 people under evacuation orders, according to officials.
Five people are dead. More than 1,300 structures have already burned and over 60,000 structures are threatened as strong winds fan blazes in densely populated parts of Southern California, officials said.
Three of the five blazes burning Thursday morning weren't contained at all, including the Palisades and Eaton fires – the two largest. The Hurst, Lidia and Sunset blazes were also active fires.
