Major brush fires burning in SoCal amid powerful windstorm

Last updated: Wednesday, January 8, 2025 9:07PM GMT
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LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Firefighters are battling several wildfires across Los Angeles County, including in the foothills of Pacific Palisades, in the Eaton Canyon area near Altadena, and the Sylmar area.

Red flag warnings are in effect and will and remain in place until 6 p.m. Thursday for the Malibu coast, the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area, the San Gabriel Valley, the San Fernando Valley, Calabasas, the Santa Clarita Valley, the San Gabriel Mountains, and the 5 Freeway and 14 Freeway corridors.

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Jan 08, 2025, 9:02 PM

Wildfires burning in SoCal: Numbers at a glance

Here's are all the wildfires burning in Southern California at a glance.

Eaton Fire in Altadena area
- 10,600 acres
- 100+ structures destroyed
- 2 fatalities

Palisades Fire
- 11,000+ acres
- 1,000 structures burned

Hurst Fire in Sylmar
- 700 acres

Woodley Fire in Sepulveda Basin
- 30 acres, contained

Tyler Fire
- 15 acres, contained

2:42 AM GMT

LAFD asks off-duty personnel to share their availability

The Los Angeles Fire Department is asking off-duty personnel to reach out and share their availability as the department looks to get more resources and boost staffing overnight. Any off-duty personnel is being asked to call 213-576-8962 and report their availability.

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2:56 AM GMT

Pacific Palisades Charter High School confirmed to be on fire

A firefighter confirmed to ABC7 that Pacific Palisades Charter High School is currently on fire.

Across the street, Theatre Palisades playhouse was seen burning as well.

A firefighter confirmed to ABC7 that Pacific Palisades Charter High School is on fire.
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3:54 AM GMT

Trees, brush on Getty Villa Museum grounds catch fire

Some "trees and vegetation on site" of the Getty Villa Museum have burned amid a fast-moving brush fire, according to a statement from the president and CEO of the Getty Trust.

Videos from the scene showed the hillsides on fire leading up to the entrance of the Getty Villa, but the flames have not made contact with the museum.

Katherine E. Fleming said the Getty made "extensive efforts" to clear brush from the surrounding area and that "staff and the collection remain safe."

Video from the scene showed flames burning dangerously close to the Getty Villa Museum amid the growing Palisades Fire.

"Museum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air handling systems," the statement said. "The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections."

Fleming said additional fire prevention measures in place at the Villa include water storage on-site. In addition, the grounds were irrigated in the morning.

The Getty Villa was closed to the public Tuesday and will remain closed through at least Monday.

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2:10 AM GMT

Governor Newsom proclaims state of emergency amid dangerous fire weather

California Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency Tuesday to "further support the communities impacted" by the Palisades Fire.

The Governor met with local and state fire officials and announced that California had secured a Fire Management assistance Grant (FMAG) from the Federal Emergency management agency (FEMA) to ensure the availability of vital resources to suppress the fire.

The fire was burning 1,262 acres as of 6 p.m. Tuesday. 30,000 people were evacuated, including 10,000 homes and 15,000 structures. No injuries have been reported.

"It's incredibly important that we heed the warnings, the calls. We're not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination," said the Governor. "You may feel at home that you're fine down in Riverside County, San Bernardino County, down in Ventura County, but there's a reason why we prepositioned hundreds of assets and personnel on Sunday."