Water-dropping aircraft return as deadly, out-of-control wildfires burn in Los Angeles area

LOS ANGELES (NEXSTAR) — Two people are dead, many have been hurt, and more than 1,000 structures have been destroyed by multiple massive wildfires tearing across the Los Angeles area, authorities said Wednesday. Crews may soon receive reprieve as water-dropping aircraft have been able to return to the skies.

Three major fires — the Eaton Fire, the Palisades Fire, and the Hurst Fire — continue to burn from the Pacific Coast inland to Pasadena, home of the famed Rose Parade. Thousands of firefighters have been attacking the flames, with the Los Angeles Fire Department calling for off-duty firefighters to help.

The water-dropping aircraft, grounded by high winds, have returned to the skies as of midday Wednesday. Firefighters from Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, as well as Northern California, have also been called in to assist local teams battling the fires.

"None of us know where the next one is going to be," Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said during a Wednesday morning press conference while encouraging residents to be vigilant as the fires spread rapidly.

Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone confirmed that two civilians have died in the Eaton Fire. He did not provide their causes of death. Authorities said two people have also been arrested for allegedly trying to loot abandoned homes in the area.

Here's what we know.

Thousands ordered to evacuate, millions without power

At least 70,000 residents were ordered to evacuate as the fires marched toward highly populated and affluent neighborhoods home to California’s rich and famous. Hollywood stars, including Mark Hamill, Mandy Moore and James Woods, were among those forced to flee.

The home of Vice President Kamala Harris in Los Angeles was included in one of the evacuation zones, although no one was there, according to a spokesperson.

Images of the devastation that emerged overnight showed luxurious homes that had collapsed in a whirlwind of flaming embers. The tops of palm trees whipped against a glowing red sky.

Photos: Massive wildfires devastate Los Angeles area

As of late Wednesday morning, more than 2 million were without power in and around Southern California. Los Angeles County had the largest share of power outages by far, with 1.2 million customers impacted, KTLA reported, citing the California Office of Emergency Services.

Some of those impacted were part of a Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS, in which utilities cut power as a preventative measure when fire risk is high out of fear that downed power lines could spark new blazes.

Eaton Fire spreading rapidly

Nexstar’s KTLA reported over 100 structures have burned in the Eaton Fire as flames destroyed homes, medical centers, daycares, gyms and more throughout Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning. KTLA crews captured homes going up in flames as the fire reached Pasadena late Wednesday morning.

The Eaton Fire is continuing to spread rapidly and has scorched 10,600 acres as of Wednesday morning, according to CalFire. No containment has been reached and a cause has not been identified.

Flames that broke out Tuesday evening near a nature preserve in the foothills northeast of LA spread so rapidly that staff at a senior living center had to push dozens of residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds down the street to a parking lot. Residents — one as old as 102 — waited in their bedclothes as embers fell around them until ambulances, buses and construction vans arrived to take them to safety.

Palisades Fire rips through Pacific Palisades neighborhood

Another blaze that started hours earlier ripped through the city’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood, a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity homes and memorialized by the Beach Boys in their 1960s hit “Surfin' USA.” In the race to get to safety, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot, some toting suitcases.

As of Wednesday morning, the fire has spread to more than 5,000 acres with no containment.

During a Wednesday morning press conference, Marrone said an estimated 1,000 structures had been lost in the Palisades Fire. He also confirmed a “high number of people who didn’t evacuate” suffered serious injuries.

A traffic jam on Palisades Drive prevented emergency vehicles from getting through, and a bulldozer was brought in to push the abandoned cars to the side and create a path. Video along the Pacific Coast Highway showed widespread destruction of homes and businesses along the famed roadway.

Pacific Palisades resident Kelsey Trainor said the only road in and out of her neighborhood was blocked. Ash fell all around while fires burned on both sides of the road.

“We looked across and the fire had jumped from one side of the road to the other side of the road,” Trainor said. “People were getting out of the cars with their dogs and babies and bags. They were crying and screaming."

The fire burned down Temescal Canyon, a popular hiking area surrounded by dense neighborhoods of multimillion-dollar homes. Flames jumped the famous Sunset Boulevard and burned parts of the Palisades Charter High School, which has been featured in many Hollywood productions, including the 1976 horror movie “Carrie,” the 2003 remake of “Freaky Friday” and the TV series “Teen Wolf.”

Several people in Malibu were treated for burns, and a firefighter had a serious head injury, according to Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott.

Separate smaller fires also burning

The Hurst Fire was the third to start Tuesday evening, quickly prompting evacuations in Sylmar, a San Fernando Valley community that's the northernmost neighborhood in Los Angeles.

A fourth fire, the Tyler Fire, was reported early Wednesday in Coachella, in Riverside County. The causes were under investigation and, at last update, it was 50% contained.

Another fire, the Woodley Fire, also broke out on Wednesday. Located in the Sepulveda Basin and quickly grew to 75 acres, KTLA reported.

Santa Ana winds fueling flames

Flames were being pushed by Santa Ana winds topping 60 mph in some places Tuesday, and increasing to 80 mph by early Wednesday, according to reports received by the National Weather Service. They could top 100 mph in mountains and foothills, including in areas that have not seen substantial rain in months.

California’s wildfire season typically begins in June or July and runs through October, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association, but January wildfires are not unprecedented. There was one in 2022 and 10 in 2021, according to CalFire.

The season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, the association said.

“This will likely be the most destructive windstorm seen (since a) 2011 windstorm that did extensive damage to Pasadena and nearby foothills of the San Gabriel Valley,” the weather service said in a red-flag warning early Wednesday.

Newsom posted on X early Wednesday that California had deployed more than 1,400 firefighting personnel to combat the blazes. “Emergency officials, firefighters and first responders are all hands on deck through the night to do everything possible to protect lives,” Newsom said.

President Joe Biden canceled plans to travel to inland Riverside County, where he was to announce the establishment of two new national monuments. He remained in Los Angeles, where smoke was visible from his hotel, and was briefed on the wildfires.

Biden and Newsom were briefed on the situation by officials late Wednesday morning.

Recent dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, where there’s been very little rain so far this season. Southern California hasn’t seen more than 0.1 inches of rain since early May.

Longtime Palisades resident Will Adams said he immediately went to pick his two kids up from St. Matthews Parish School when he heard the fire was nearby. Embers flew into his wife's car as she tried to evacuate, he said.

“She vacated her car and left it 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 it in the 56 years he’s lived there.

“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,” he said.

The Associated Press and Nexstar's Alix Martichoux contributed to this report.