Thousands of residents have been forced to evacuate the Los Angeles area as wildfires continue to tear through the region Wednesday. The Palisades Fire, which was first reported at 10:30 AM PST on Tuesday, was fanned by wind gusts of up to 60 MPH into Tuesday night, leaving the Los Angeles area under major evacuation orders.
As of Wednesday morning, the fire had spread to at least 2,921 acres and was 0% contained, with an expectation that its only going to spread due to the strong Santa Ana wind gusts and low humidity fueling the fires.
A second fire, the Eaton fire, was reported by CalFire on Tuesday evening, and had spread to 2,227 acres by Wednesday morning. It, along with three other reported fires in Los Angeles and Riverside counties, were 0% contained on Wednesday morning.
The fire has burned through homes and businesses in the Pacific Palisades, and the Palisades Fire has destroyed 1000 structures as of Wednesday morning, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Nearly 70,000 people in the LA region were without power early Wednesday.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, who declared a state of emergency Tuesday night, said early Wednesday morning that the state had deployed over 1,400 firefighters to the region to fight these “unprecedented fires.” As of early Wednesday morning, no fatalities had been reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
See photos of the massive fire below:
Water is dropped on the advancing Palisades Fire by helicopter in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Ethan Swope—AP
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People watch the smoke and flames from the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7.Tiffany Rose—Getty Images
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The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Ethan Swope—AP
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The Palisades Fire burns a Christmas tree inside a residence in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Jan. 7. Ethan Swope—AP
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Firefighters work to put out the wildfire in a residential area during the Pacific Palisades fire in Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Philip Cheung—The New York Times/Redux
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Firefighters battle fire from the surf as beachfront homes go up in flames along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu on Jan. 7.David Crane—MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News/Getty Images
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Embers whip across the ground as homes burn during the fire in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 7.Josh Edelson—AFP/Getty Images
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A palm tree burns during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Kyle Grillot—Bloomberg/Getty Images
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Will Adams watches as flames from the Palisades Fire close in on his property in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Ethan Swope—AP
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Photographers watch as the Palisades fire burns at the end of Orlon Ave. in the Pacific Palisades, on Jan. 7.Brian van der Brug—Los Angeles Times/Getty Images
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A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire as it burns a structure in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Ethan Swope—AP
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Firefighters work during the Palisades fire on Jan. 7.David Butow—Redux
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A resident stands in front of a garage as fire crews fight the Palisades Fire nearby in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 7.Ethan Swope—AP
