Burning through five football fields a minute, the Palisades fire has expanded rapidly over the past few hours, destroying homes and prompting evacuation warnings for tens of thousands of people, from Malibu to Santa Monica.
Many were forced to abandon cars in the area that is again at the center of a large blaze following December’s Franklin fire. With traffic slowing evacuations and flames jumping the highway, some had also considered sheltering on the beach.
Two other fires have erupted in Los Angeles County: The 500-acre strong Hurst fire north of San Fernando, and the Eaton fire in Altadena, which has grown to 1,000 acres in a matter of hours.
At a Pasadena elderly care home, workers raced to get everybody out safe with Eaton fire just a block away, according to CNN affiliate KCAL. Video shows dozens of residents in wheelchairs, many wearing only thin gowns and covered in shawls on the cold night.
Some didn’t even have shoes, only their socks on, in the rush to leave.
Here’s what you should know:
• Firefighter injured: A 25-year-old firefighter has sustained a serious head injury. She received treatment at the scene and was sent to hospital, the fire department said. More than 1,400 firefighters have been deployed to fight the fires.
• No containment expected: There is no possibility of containing the Los Angeles fires tonight, and firefighters are focusing on saving lives instead, said David Acuna, the CAL Fire spokesperson.
• Firefighter warnings: Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Sheila Kelliher has warned that firefighters were in for a long night, with “tornado-like” winds expected to get worse. Kelliher said the terrain and wind combined created a “massive fight.”
• Bulldozers move cars: As tens of thousands of residents fled the Palisades fire on Tuesday, fire officials at one point used a bulldozer to move abandoned vehicles, which had piled up as evacuees became stuck in traffic and decided to flee on foot, off a road. If you have to abandon a vehicle, “Get it as far off the road as you can so that emergency vehicles get by,” Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell said.
• Renowned buildings in flames: A beloved roadside seafood restaurant in Malibu was destroyed by the Palisades fire. The Reel Inn was 36 years old. The Palisades Charter High School, a famed set for films, and nearby elementary school were engulfed by flames.
• Power outages: More than 200,000 homes and buildings are without power in the county.
• All equipment used: California Gov. Gavin Newsom said that “hundreds and hundreds of personnel” were responding to the Palisades fire, using airplanes, helicopters, bulldozers and water tenders. The Los Angeles Fire Department is also asking off-duty members to call in to help battle the blaze. But as fire crews battle the Eaton fire north of Pasadena, their fight is limited by having grounded aircraft due to the extreme winds.
• Schools close: Five schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District will close on Wednesday, and classes are moving online.
