Tens of thousands are fleeing as wildfires rage through the Los Angeles area Reuters writes

By Jorge Garcia and Mike Blake

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – More than 30,000 people evacuated their homes as a wildfire engulfed coastal Los Angeles in just hours, and a second blaze some 30 miles (50 km) inland spread rapidly on Wednesday.

Scores of buildings were destroyed and nearly 3,000 acres (1,200 hectares) burned in the upscale Pacific Palisades area between the coastal cities of Santa Monica and Malibu, officials said. The area is home to numerous film and music stars.

Freeways were jammed with people fleeing the inferno as plumes of smoke and flames billowed across Los Angeles on Tuesday night. The fires were not contained by Wednesday morning, and Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency

Pacific Palisades resident Cindy Festa said by the time she evacuated, the fires were “this close to the car,” pointing with her thumb and forefinger.

“People have left their cars on Palisades Drive. The hillside is burning. The palm trees – anything goes,” Festa said from her car.

A fire official told local television station KTLA that several people were injured in the Palisades fire, some with burns to their faces and hands. One female firefighter suffered a head injury.

Hollywood actor James Woods said on X that he was able to evacuate his Pacific Palisades home, but added, “At this point, I don’t know if our home is still standing.”

The second fire, called Eaton (NYSE: ) The fire broke out some 30 miles (50 km) inland in Altadena, near Pasadena, and grew to 1,000 hectares (400 acres) from 200 hectares in a matter of hours, according to Cal Fire.

Nearly 100 residents of a nursing home in Pasadena were evacuated, CBS News reported. Video shows elderly residents, many in wheelchairs and pushchairs, huddled in a smoky and windy parking lot as fire engines and ambulances arrive.

Firefighters said a third blaze, called the Hurst Fire, broke out in Sylmar, in the San Fernando Valley northwest of Los Angeles, prompting the evacuation of some nearby residents.

More than 220,000 homes and businesses in Los Angeles County were without power Tuesday night, according to PowerOutage.us.

PALISADE OF FIRE

Witnesses reported numerous homes on fire with flames nearly incinerating their cars as people fled the hillsides of Topanga Canyon as the fire spread from there to the Pacific Ocean.

Local media reported that the fire had spread to the north, burning houses near Malibu. Parts of Malibu and Santa Monica are under evacuation orders.

Multiple burn victims were treated after walking toward Duke’s restaurant in Malibu in the evening, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing a fire official.

Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told a news conference earlier that more than 25,000 people in 10,000 homes were at risk.

Firefighting planes scooped up water from the sea to dump on the blaze as it engulfed homes. Bulldozers cleared the abandoned vehicles from the roads to allow emergency vehicles to pass, television images showed.

The fire burned some trees on the grounds of the Getty Villa, a museum filled with priceless works of art, but the collection remained safe mostly because nearby brush was trimmed as a precaution, the museum said.

Before the fire broke out, the National Weather Service issued its highest warning for extreme fire conditions for much of Los Angeles County Tuesday through Thursday.

With low humidity and dry vegetation due to a lack of rain, conditions were “about as bad as they get for fires,” the service said.

Governor Newsom said the state has deployed personnel, fire engines and aircraft elsewhere in Southern California because of the fire danger for the wider region.

Strong winds altered President Joe Biden’s travel plans, grounding Air Force One in Los Angeles. He planned to fly inland to the Coachella Valley for the opening ceremony of two new national monuments in California.

“I have offered all federal assistance necessary to contain the horrific Pacific Palisades fire,” Biden said in a statement.

Federal aid has already been approved to help the state of California with its wildfire response, Biden said.

Actor Steve Guttenberg told KTLA television that his friends were prevented from evacuating because others left their cars on the road.

“It’s really important for everyone to come together and not worry about their personal property. Just get out there,” Guttenberg said.

“Pick up your loved ones and get out.”