Latest
LA FIRESTORM
LA wildfires send celebs including Star Wars legend fleeing with 30k evacuated & flames fanned by 100mph hurricane gales
Shocking footage shows the fires tear through LA
WILDFIRES ripping through Los Angeles have sent celebrities like a Star Wars legend fleeing as the city is hit by a "worst possible scenario".
A state of emergency has been issued with at least 30,000 locals ordered to leave their homes with multi-million dollar mansions being gutted.
30
30
30
30
Four named fires have erupted in LA - with the largest in the western neighborhood of Pacific Palisades starting on Tuesday.
Apocalyptic scenes have seen the Palisades Fire gut homes and sent locals running for their lives with only their most prized possessions.
That fire is currently "zero per cent" contained, according to the LA County Fire Department.
Celebrities like Mark Hamill, Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag, and Travis Barker's kids Alabama and Landon have all evacuated their homes.
read more news stories
The area is also home to dozens of A-listers like Ben Affleck, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.
It comes as...
- Four wildfires have erupted in LA sending tens of thousands fleeing
- State of emergency issued and all firefighters called to help
- Celebrities have been forced to flee homes as one inferno rips through affluent neighborhood
- Clip taken from a plane shows the huge scale of blaze
- Fires made worse by dry conditions and 100mph gusts
- Reality TV stars Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag lose home to fire
- Horror video shows huge flames just feet from house as two men and dog inside
The Palisades Fire has now spread some 3,000 acres backed by 100mph gusts and reached the neighboring celeb haunts of Malibu and Santa Monica.
Most read in The US Sun
Malibu has issued a prepare to evacuate order for all its residents as the inferno moves down the hills towards the iconic beachside community.
Some 1,400 firefighters and dozens of engines are fighting the fires with a plea going out to off-duty firefighters to help.
Watch California wildfires rip through Hollywood neighbourhoods
And weather forecasters think the "worst is yet to come" as a dry windstorm is expected to last for days.
A second blaze has now started in the city's northern Altadena neighborhood, while a third has started in Pasadena, and a fourth in Sylmar.
Firefighters are desperately trying get the fires under control but are unable to use air support as hurricane-strength winds are too strong.
Homes inside gated communities have caught fire while trees and shrubs at the The Getty Villa Museum are also ablaze.
Some 200,000 people have also lost power, while schools have been closed as thick black smoke is sent into the air, and evacuation shelters have been opened.
Mayor Karen Bass has issued a state of emergency while Governor Gavin Newsom has visited the Palisades Fire.
30
30
30
Two Hollywood premieres have been cancelled, including Robbie Williams' biopic and the wrestling flick Unstoppable with Jennifer Lopez.
Ash is falling from the sky and roads are blocked with some 13,000 buildings thought to be under threat.
Multiple burn victims were treated at one restaurant after they couldn't get to a hospital, the LA Times reports.
Reports are also emerging that firefighters are running out of water with hydrants in Pacific Palisades becoming dry.
30
LA developer Rick Caruso, who owns Palisades Village, told the LA Times: "There’s no water in the fire hydrants."
"The firefighters are there [in the neighborhood], and there’s nothing they can do — we’ve got neighborhoods burning, homes burning, and businesses burning. … It should never happen."
Ash is falling from the sky and roads are blocked with some 13,000 buildings thought to be under threat.
Celebs in the path of LA's monster fires
TERRIFYING wildfires have swept through Los Angeles and have forced around 30,000 people to flee, including major A-list celebs.
The largest of the raging fires has hit the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood.
This area is home to some of LA's wealthiest residents and their multi-million dollar pads.
Here are some of the stars who could be forced to evacuate the coastal area as authorities warn the "worst is yet to come".
Tom Hanks
The movie legend, 68, and his wife Rita Wilson, 68, own a $26 million mansion in the neighborhood.
They reportedly bought the sprawling 14,513 square-foot house in 2010.
Ben Affleck
The actor, 52, reportedly bought his $20.5 million bachelor pad on the same day as his now ex-wife Jennifer Lopez's birthday.
His 6,200 square-foot property, which sits on an acre of land, is near the desired Pacific Palisades area.
Mark Hamill
The Star Wars legend revealed he was evacuated from his home in Malibu.
Hamill, 73, said he fled to his daughter Chelsea's house in Hollywood with his wife Marilou and their dog Trixie.
Miles Teller
The actor, 37, and his model wife Keleigh Sperry, 32, own a $7.5 million mansion.
This couple purchased their 6,622 square-foot LA home in March 2023.
Jhene Aiko
The singer, 36, reportedly lives in her $5.6 million Pacific Palisades home with her rapper boyfriend Big Sean, 36.
Aiko's five bedroom and five bathroom home sits on half an acre of land in the affluent area.
Ralf Moeller
Gladiator star Ralf Moeller told German newspaper Bild he had fled his home and had never seen anything like it in his 30 years living in the US.
He said: "The hot desert winds blowing at speeds of more than 60 kilometers per hour are fanning the flames like a hairdryer held over the hot embers."
Alabama and Landon Barker
The children of drummer Travis Barker revealed they were forced to evacuate their LA home.
Alabama, 19, told her followers: "They are saying the fire are spreading football field amounts in seconds."
Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag
The reality TV couple revealed the heartbreaking news that their home had been completely destroyed by the wildfire.
They were able to flee their $3 million mansion with their two children in time.
Eugene Levy
Actor Eugene Levy, known for his role in the American Pie films and Schitt's Creek TV show, found himself stuck as he tried to flee.
He told the LA Times: “The smoke looked pretty black and intense over Temescal Canyon... I couldn’t see any flames but the smoke was very dark."
The Palisades Fire, which is believed to have caught in dry vegetation near North Piedra Morada Dr, started around 10.30am (6.30pm GMT) on Tuesday, according to Los Angeles spokesperson Erik Scott.
It quickly grew in scale, covering an area of 200 acres in under an hour and rapidly continued to spread.
Residents in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood were told to evacuate and sections of the Pacific Coast Highway were closed.
The Los Angeles City Fire Department said: "People in the area of Palisades need to evacuate now due to a rapidly moving wildfire.
30
30
30
"Pack all people and pets into your vehicle and leave the area immediately.
"If you are not in the mandatory evacuation zone, stay off the roads to allow first responders and evacuees to move quickly."
But desperate residents on Palisades Drive abandoned their still-running cars to get away from the rapidly spreading flames.
That caused a traffic jam preventing emergency vehicles from driving, so a bulldozer was brought in to shunt aside the cars.
30
30
30
Roads were clogged in both directions as evacuees fled down toward the Pacific Coast Highway while others begged for rides back up to their homes to rescue pets.
The neighborhood, which borders Malibu, includes hillside streets of tightly packed homes along winding mountain roads.
Actor Eugene Levy, known for his role in the American Pie films and Schitt's Creek TV show, found himself stuck as he tried to flee.
He told the LA Times: “The smoke looked pretty black and intense over Temescal Canyon... I couldn’t see any flames but the smoke was very dark."
Long-time Palisades resident Will Adams said he immediately went to pick his two kids up from school when he heard the fire was nearby.
He said embers flew into his wife's car as she tried to evacuate causing her to flee it while it was still running.
Adams said: "She and many other residents walked down toward the ocean until it was safe."
Adams said he had never witnessed anything like this in the 56 years he's lived there.
30
30
30
He watched as the sky turned brown and then black and could hear loud popping and bangs noises, which he said he believes were the transformers exploding.
"It is crazy, it's everywhere, in all the nooks and crannies of the Palisades. One home's safe, the other one's up in flames," Adams said.
The fire is also starting to threaten cultural buildings - like Los Angeles' famous Getty Villa Museum which hosts notable Greek and Roman artefacts that date back to 6,500 BC.
Getty President Katherine Fleming said in a statement: "Some trees and vegetation on the grounds of the Getty Villa were burned by late Tuesday, but staff and the museum collection remain safe."
30
30
Star Wars actor Mark Hamill has said he was evacuated from Malibu.
In an Instagram post, he said: "Personal Fire Update: 7pm - Evacuated Malibu so last-minute there small fires on both sides of the road as we approached PCH (Pacific Coast Highway)."
From there he went to his daughter Chelsea's house in Hollywood with his wife Marilou and their dog Trixie.
He said: "8:15pm - Marilou, Trixie & I arrive at Chelsea's house in Hollywood. Most horrific fire since '93. Stay safe."
30
30
The second largest fire, the Eaton Fire in Altadena, had burned more than 1,000 acres by midnight local time (8am GMT) after starting at 6pm (midnight GMT).
Locals were desperately running from the fire in the hills with some bringing horses with them, CBS reports.
The blaze erupted so quickly that workers at a care home had to push residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds down the road to safety.
Evacuation orders have been issued for Altadena, Arcadia, Pasadena and Sierra Madre, but it is unclear how many are affected by the orders.
The fires are being aggravated by hot, dry winds that are gusting up to 100mph.
The causes of all the fires are under investigation.
30
30
Forecasters said the system could develop into the worst windstorm in a decade.
President Joe Biden was scheduled to give remarks in the nearby Coachella Valley, where he would announce the creation of two national monuments.
However, Biden abruptly cancelled the speech because of the fire.
In a post on X, he addressed the fire saying: "I am being frequently briefed on the wildfires in west Los Angeles.
"My team and I are in touch with state and local officials, and I have offered any federal assistance that is needed to help suppress the terrible Pacific Palisades fire.
"Earlier tonight, FEMA approved a Fire Management Assistance Grant to support areas that are impacted and help reimburse the state of California for the immediate firefighting costs.
30
30
"My Administration will do everything it can to support the response.
"I urge the residents of the Pacific Palisades and the surrounding areas of Los Angeles to stay vigilant and listen to local officials."
The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office issued a warning to Brits travelling in the area saying they should monitor local media and follow official advice.
Flames are now being fanned by dangerous wind conditions, threatening to create a deadly wind storm.
"This is pretty much the worst possible scenario for a firefight," LAFD's David Ortiz told .
Actor James Woods, known for voicing Hades in the 1997 animated film Hercules, shared a terrifying video of the fire approaching his home.
30
30
"I'm standing in my driveway waiting to evacuate," he said on X as planes zoomed over the encroaching blaze.
"Hope everybody gets out safely," he said in another post.
Video shared by Matthew Seedorff, a FoxLA reporter, shows multiple houses engulfed in flames on Shadow Mountain Drive in Pacific Palisades.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Actor Steve Guttenberg, who lives in the Pacific Palisades, urged people who abandoned their cars to leave their keys behind so they could be moved to make way for fire trucks.
"This is not a parking lot", Guttenberg told KTLA. "I have friends up there and they can't evacuate. I'm walking up there as far as I can moving cars."
30
30
30
Topics