Pacific Palisades wildfire explodes in California

The Palisades Fire, which erupted from just a few acres at 10:30 a.m. to more than 1,200 acres this afternoon, has damaged multiple homes, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin M. Crowley said.

The exact number was unavailable. Crowley told reporters that 10,367 homes were threatened by the blaze, which is spreading in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood.

A map showed mandatory evacuations for the entire community, from Interstate 405 to the sea and from its southern boundary with Santa Monica nearly to its northern border with Malibu.

According to the property data firm Attom, the median home price for the neighborhood last year was $3.1 million.

Firefighters are working to douse houses in water as the Palisades Fire continues to grow. NBC News’ Bill Karins details weather conditions while the winds fuel the flames. 

More than 10,000 households are threatened by the Palisades Fire, and evacuation orders are in effect for around 30,000 residents, the Los Angeles fire chief said.

The fire, which has grown to more than 1,200 acres, was first reported around 10:30 this morning as a brushfire, and responding firefighters found an approximately 10-acre fire with winds of around 40 mph, Fire Chief Kristin M. Crowley said.

Low humidity, strong winds and topography are “making it extremely challenging” for firefighters, Crowley said.

Several dozen cars were abandoned on Sunset Boulevard after embers picked up and winds created a new fire.

The Palisades Fire had grown to more than 1,200 acres by about 3:30 this afternoon, according to CalFire.

The fire was at 1,262 acres, according to the department’s web page about the fire, which broke out today at 11:04 a.m.

The fire has been fueled by dry conditions and dangerous Santa Ana winds, officials have said.

Video from NBC Los Angeles shows burning and damaged homes.  

Evacuating from the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles isn’t as simple as it might seem.

A resident who spoke live on the air to NBC Los Angeles explained how she tried to escape before she retreated to safety as flames raged around her vehicle.

“I did attempt to go down Palisades Drive, but it was like a tornado of fire all around me,” she said. “The firefighters were there telling us to turn around. I sped back up the mountain.”

The Palisades resident took a later opportunity to get out. She described what she saw.

“There were cars parked on the sidewalks,” she said, “like it was an apocalypse.”

Drivers were at a standstill as traffic gridlock plagued Pacific Coast Highway and other roads near a wind-driven wildfire in Pacific Palisades, NBC Los Angeles reported.

The Palisades Fire was reported this morning in the Los Angeles County coastal community near Malibu on a day of strong winds throughout Southern California. Traffic backed up on roads out of the area, including along Palisades Drive, where at least one vehicle caught fire.

It was not clear whether the fire was due to a mechanical problem or the wildfire. Embers scattered by strong winds can start spot fires in previously unburned areas.

There were no immediate reports of injuries. Evacuation orders were in effect for the area.

The American Red Cross for Los Angeles was transitioning an evacuation center in Westwood into an overnight shelter where people can get showers, food and safety through the night as the Palisades Fire burns.

The site had served as an evacuation center for hours today but was transitioned this afternoon, American Red Cross Los Angeles spokesperson Mimi Teller told NBC Los Angeles during live coverage.

The shelter is preparing to welcome people who are distressed after having left their homes because of the fast-moving fire, she said.

It was just last month that another large fire, the Franklin Fire, burned in Malibu and forced evacuations there.

“A lot of people are in shock, and some people are so numb that they just, ‘I barely got out, I barely got my pet,’” Teller said.

People preparing to leave a fire should get their pets in one room so they can easily access them, she said. People with small pets are asked to keep them in a carrier, but details about pets at the shelter are being worked out, she told NBC Los Angeles.

More than 17,000 utility homes and businesses are without power across California as warm, dry winds raced to the coast and fanned the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles today, according to utility tracker PowerOutage.us.

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ office said that about 15,000 customers of the city’s power utility were without electricity this afternoon and that 14,400 more have had it restored since the day began.

“Strong winds can knock over trees, or cause branches and palm fronds to strike power lines which could result in power outages,” Bass’ office said in a statement.

“If that occurs,” the mayor’s office continued, “a crew’s first responsibility is to secure the affected area to protect the public from safety hazards posed by downed trees and power lines, followed by the removal of trees entangling LADWP power poles and power lines. Only after this is done can crews begin repair work to restore power.”

Officials said they’ve closed Topanga State Park in the Santa Monica Mountains north of Pacific Palisades.

“State Parks has closed Topanga State Park as the Palisades Fire is currently burning on park property,” California State Parks spokesperson Adeline Yee said by email.

She said it has also closed Will Rogers State Historic Park as a precaution. That property is south of the fire and adjacent to Pacific Palisades’ Riviera neighborhood.

Will Rogers State Beach along the coast is open.

The Los Angeles Unified School District said today that some schools were being relocated because of the Palisades Fire.

Palisades Charter Elementary School, Marquez Charter Elementary School and Paul Revere Charter Middle School were moved to temporary locations, the district said on X.

Pepperdine University, which was threatened by wildfire last month, is not under any threat today, but it is monitoring the situation, it said.

The Palisades Fire is 9 miles east of the campus, it said on X.

Getting out hasn’t been easy for the people trying to flee the Palisades Fire. Gridlock is being reported along the only available thoroughfares.

The exclusive coastal community is boxed in by mountainous state land to the east and Sunset Boulevard, which runs north to south alongside Pacific Coast Highway to the west.

All roads connecting homes in Pacific Palisades and the neighboring Sunset Mesa community, home to the Getty Villa museum, funnel onto Pacific Coast Highway, creating a traffic nightmare on the best of days.

During emergencies, residents have few routes to get out and must contend with firefighters and first responders rushing to the scene.

The Palisades Fire is now more than 770 acres, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in an update this afternoon.

The evacuation zone remains unchanged, it said.

Dozers will clear about 30 vehicles that had been abandoned on Sunset and Palisades to improve access, the fire department said.

The White House said today President Joe Biden’s scheduled trip to the Coachella Valley desert to dedicate the Chuckwalla and Sáttítla Highlands national monuments has been postponed amid Southern California’s windstorm.

“Today’s event will be rescheduled for next week at the White House so that key stakeholders can attend,” it said in a statement.

Remarks prepared for today’s event will be delivered in Los Angeles, where Biden, who arrived yesterday, was staying.

The National Weather Service recorded winds of nearly 50 mph in the valley today and said dust storms were possible as temperatures were likely to reach 72 in Thermal, where Biden had been scheduled to arrive.

Biden’s proclamations on the monuments will protect 848,000 acres of lands of scientific, cultural, ecological and historical importance, the White House said. 

Emmy-winning actor James Wood posted a video on X appearing to show flames approaching his home in Pacific Palisades.

The National Weather Service, which already today recorded wind gusts of 50 to 80 mph, expects the danger to grow overnight, with gusts up to 100 mph in the windiest spots.

“It looks like the winds will increase a little in strength later today and tonight,” Rich Thompson, a weather service meteorologist based in Oxnard, said.

Winter wildfires in California are often driven by the Santa Ana winds, which sweep down mountain slopes to bring hot, dry air to coastal areas. The winds typically lower humidity levels and can rapidly push any fires that start, particularly when the landscape is dry.

The Palisades Fire has put structures — mostly homes — “under immediate threat” and mandatory evacuations have been ordered, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in an afternoon update.

The blaze — centered on Piedra Morada Drive in the Pacific Palisades hills, above Pacific Coast Highway — is estimated to have spread across 300 acres, Los Angeles fire officials said.

The evacuation zone includes the area from Merrimac Road west to Topanga Canyon Boulevard and south to Pacific Coast Highway. An evacuation center has been set up at the Westwood Recreation Center in West L.A.

The fire burning in the Pacific Palisades Highlands community has grown to about 200 acres, according to Erik Scott, a Los Angeles fire captain and public information officer.

Ahead of the blazes, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was putting state resources in position.

Yesterday he said he planned to mobilize state resources to tackle the storm, including assigning 65 fire engines, seven water tenders, seven helicopters and 109 specialized workers.

“We are no strangers to winter-time wildfire threats, so I ask all Californians to pay attention to local authorities and be prepared to evacuate if told to go,” Newsom said in a statement.

The National Weather Service said red flag warnings, which alert people to winds greater than 20 mph and relative humidity of less than 25%, cover 19 million people.

They signal “extreme fire danger,” the weather service said.

The warnings started at noon and extend until 4 p.m. tomorrow for the bulk of those covered, including all 10 million residents of Los Angeles County and most in Ventura County to its north.

They also cover the 3.3 million people in San Diego County, which abuts the Mexico border, as well as millions in the Inland Empire, which extends nearly to Las Vegas, and those in inland Orange County between San Diego and L.A.

The weather service in San Diego said mountainous terrain is particularly vulnerable to the dry warm winds that are traveling from the northeast toward the ocean.

“Any new fire ignition in these areas will likely have very dangerous wildfire spread and behavior with great difficulty in containment that could impact life and property,” the office said in an urgent fire weather message this afternoon.