A huge section of southern California was ablaze early this morning as the Pacific Palisades fire continued to spread westward.
The fire erupted at around 10.30am yesterday and early reports from authorities said it spanned 200 acres. But within half an hour, the inferno expanded to cover 770 acres.
It has since reached over 3,000 acres, and is destroying about ‘three football fields’ of land every sixty seconds, prompting a mass exodus of terrified residents.
Many abandoned their cars on one of the only roads in and out of the upscale Pacific Palisades area, fleeing on foot from the raging inferno as it engulfed an area packed with multimillion-dollar homes in the Santa Monica Mountains.
As of Wednesday morning, flames extend as far west as Malibu and as far east as Topanga State Park, according to the fire map released by the Los Angeles County Bureau of Land Management.
That entire area remains under evacuation orders, as California Department of Forest and Fire Protection warned there is an ‘immediate threat’ to their lives.
‘This is a lawful order to LEAVE NOW,’ the department said. ‘The area is lawfully closed to public access.’
More than 100 firefighters and strike teams are now working to get the blaze under control
More than 30,000 people have since heeded the call to flee the City of Angels, as California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that ‘many structures’ had already been destroyed.
The situation may only get worse overnight, officials warned, amid ‘life-threatening, destructive’ winds. Hundreds of firefighters swarmed the area, attacking the blaze from the ground and the air, while crews worked through steep terrain to cut back vegetation and create firebreaks.
More than 100 firefighters and strike teams are now working to get the blaze under control, as it moves west amid wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour, according to The New York Times.
Two other fires, the Eaton and Hurst fires have additionally destroyed 1,000 and 500 acres respectively.
Staff at a senior living center had to push dozens of residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds down the street to a parking lot.
The residents – one as old as 102 – waited there in their bedclothes as the night sky glowed red from flames and embers fell around them until they could be rescued.
Southern California Edison (SCE) also shut off power to Cuthbert, Galahad, and parts of Malibu in an effort to contain the blaze.
As of Tuesday evening, more than 33,000 Los Angeles residents were without power, the vast majority of whom have their power provided by SCE, according to poweroutage.us.
Fire engulfs a home as the Eaton Fire moves through the area on Wednesday fueled by intense Santa Ana winds
Residents of a senior center are evacuated as the Eaton Fire approaches Tuesday
A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire as it burns a structure in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles
The company expected the power to be out for at least eight hours, but noted it could be longer if crews need daylight to visibly inspect power lines and equipment.
That inspection is required before SCE can restore power.
Pepperdine University announced Wednesday morning that its Malibu and Calabasas will be shut today due to the wildfires.
The blazes are being fueled by intense Santa Ana winds which show no signs of abating.
So far there have been no fatalities reported, however several civilians and firefighters have sustained injuries.
