A fierce new wildfire has broken out in the Hollywood Hills, prompting a mass evacuation of iconic Hollywood Boulevard amid warnings that another 100,000 residents should be prepared to evacuate their homes.
The hellish, fast-moving inferno that swept through the hills triggered the dramatic evacuation order at 6 p.m. local time on Wednesday, impacting at least 20 acres already near Runyon Canyon.
So far, at least five people have lost their lives in this devastating natural disaster: 1,000 structures have been completely destroyed and thousands of people have been left with nothing but ashes throughout the City of Los Angeles.
Now, the Sunset Fire is about to wreak havoc on the celebrity epicenter, prompting the evacuation of the famous strip, home of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The alert said: “A mandatory evacuation order is already in place for Laurel Canyon Blvd (in the west) to Mulholland Dr (in the north) to 101 Freeway (in the east) to Hollywood Blvd (in the south).”
The witnesses who detected the new fire said that the flames “exploded in size”, because the area is fertile and with dense undergrowth that is unfortunately causing the fire.
Speaking from above the fire in a helicopter, ABC 7 reporter Chris Christi said, “The view here is very concerning.” Just north of Hollywood Boulevard. This thing has exploded in size. This is all very thick fuel that is fueling this forest fire.
“They have immediately called the nearest 20 trucks to come here, but it will take more than trucks to access this fire.
Hollywood Hills burns in another fire
A new wildfire has broken out in Hollwood Hills, prompting a mass evacuation of Hollywood Boulevard amid warnings. Another 100,000 residents should be prepared to evacuate their homes.
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A new evacuation order came around 6 p.m. local time Wednesday as a fast-moving fire swept through the hills and affected at least 10 acres already near Runyon Canyon.
‘This is exploding before our eyes. It is a very large fire that is spreading rapidly.’
Thousands of homes and structures have already been lost across California, but with fires still burning it is impossible for officials to understand the true magnitude of the losses.
A trio of the smaller fires burning across the state are now contained, but at least they’re still burning, in addition to the Hollywood Hills Fire that just ignited.
Pasadena Mayor Victor M. Gordo revealed Wednesday afternoon that 100,000 people were already under mandatory evacuation orders, and now another 100,000 have been warned to leave as well, the New York Times reported.
The alert has been given to residents in danger zones that have not yet been elevated to mandatory evacuation zones, but could soon be.
Kyle Alarid, captain of the Palo Alto Fire Department, said first responders and firefighters are “triageing” homes in fire-ravaged neighborhoods.
He said it’s simply not possible to save them all, despite the best efforts of the exhausted crew, who worked through the night to protect what they could.
“It’s always difficult, because you can save one but it seems like you can never save enough.”
To make matters worse, the National Weather Service says gusty winds and very dry conditions will continue to fuel fires in the Los Angeles area in the coming days.
Forecasters predicted wind gusts of 35 to 55 mph, which could increase in the mountains and foothills.
Forecasters said Los Angeles and Ventura counties would have fire weather through Friday, which would mean low relative humidity, strong winds, unstable air and dryness.
One small silver lining is that the winds have temporarily dissipated enough for planes to help fight the fires, Pasadena Fire Chief Chad Augustine said.
“Tonight we have very light wind conditions where we can get airplanes and a ton of additional resources to get this fire under control,” Augustin said.
“That’s what gives me confidence that we’re going to get this fire under control.”
Photo: Destruction near Eaton Canyon
The vehicles left behind have been leveled.
After a brief respite overnight tonight, the Wild Cards are expected to pick up again on Thursday and Friday.
The fire chief warned that it was still an active fire with the risk of spreading during the next day.
‘Do I expect there to be a risk of the fire spreading tomorrow? Yes. Do I expect erratic fire weather like we saw last night? No,’ he said.
California officials said the Palisades Fire has now grown to 15,832 acres, while the Eaton Fire is at 10,600 acres, followed by the Hurst Fire at 505 acres.
Three other smaller fires that broke out during Wednesday have since been contained, officials said.
And now, residents of Los Angeles’ most luxurious neighborhoods, home to celebrity enclaves and million-dollar mansions, have received alerts warning them to boil their tap water before consuming it.
“This applies to water used for brushing teeth, making ice cubes, and for preparing food, such as washing produce,” the notice states.
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In bold capital letters, residents are warned that until further notice they should “use only boiled tap water or bottled water for drinking and cooking.”
Tap water should be boiled for one minute and then cooled.
The alert comes amid revelations that water supplies are running low, impacting the heroic efforts of first responders trying to put out the fires.
Los Angeles Fire Captain Erik Scott said, “We experienced some challenges with water pressure while fighting the Pacific Palisades Fire, particularly yesterday.”
‘We worked very closely with the Department of Water and Power, and they proactively filled all available water storage tanks. But the problem is that water availability was affected at higher elevations. The pressure wasn’t exactly what we needed and that’s why it affected some fire hydrants.’
In total, three huge water tanks carrying a million gallons of water each were depleted.
The first was dry at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, the second at 8:30 p.m. and the third at 3 a.m. on Wednesday.