par Jorge Garcia et Mike Blake
A fire raged Tuesday in an upscale neighborhood of Los Angeles, in the United States, destroying homes and prompting evacuations.
At least 1,182 hectares went up in smoke in an area of Pacific Palisades, a Los Angeles neighborhood home to many celebrities, located between the cities of Malibu and Santa Monica, officials said.
Warnings had been issued against the risk of fire due to strong winds after a prolonged period of drought.
The fire grew quickly, as officials estimated conditions were expected to worsen overnight, which could force more people to evacuate their homes.
Witnesses said several homes were engulfed in flames as they fled the hills of Topanga Canyon, where the fire spread.
Firefighters used water bombers to fight the flames.
Some people were forced to leave their vehicles to evacuate on foot, even though there is only one main road from the canyon to the coast and only one highway to reach safe areas.
The National Weather Service (NWS), the American meteorological institute, had issued a fire alert from Tuesday to Thursday in most of Los Angeles County.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency and said firefighters had been deployed to the south of the state as a preventative measure.
“We hope we’re wrong, but we expect to see more fires break out,” he said at a news conference.
A second fire broke out later near Pasadena, where 80 hectares burned, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said.
US President Joe Biden said in a statement that he had offered federal support to fight the fire.
(with Daniel Cole and Daniel Trotta; French version Camille Raynaud)
