Firefighters scrambled to corral a fast-moving wildfire in the Los Angeles hillsides dotted with celebrity homes as a “life-threatening, destructive” windstorm hit Southern California, fanning the blaze seen for miles while roads were clogged with cars as residents tried to flee.
Forecasters warned the worst may be yet to come with the windstorm predicted to last for days, producing isolated gusts that could top 100 mph in mountains and foothills.
Already the winds were toppling trees, creating dangerous surf and bringing extreme wildfire risk to areas that haven’t seen substantial rain in months.
A house burns in the Marquez Knolls neighborhood of Pacific Palisades.
People evacuate near Sunset Boulevard and Palisades Drive.
A firefighting plane makes a drop on the Palisades fire.
Palisades resident Maggie Stokes keeps an eye on the fire from the California Incline in Santa Monica.
Joy Schroeder helps fight the fire at her brother’s house in the Marquez Knolls neighborhood.
A car is surrounded by the flames of the Pacific Palisades fire along Sunset Blvd.
Smoke rises over a ridgeline in Pacific Palisades.
A firefighting plane makes a drop on a burning home.
The Palisades fire quickly consumed more than 1,200 acres, pushed by gusting Santa Ana winds.
A woman keeps a watchful eye on the Pacific Palisades fire that burns several miles behind the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica.