"Apocalyptic" wildfires ravage Los Angeles as resident says “it is very scary out there”

A resident caught up in the Los Angeles wildfires has described the situation as ‘apocolyptic’. Sarah Moore, who lives in the Malibu area, shared a video showing fires creeping out of Pacific Palisades towards surrounding neighbourhoods - fanned by high winds.

California firefighters are currently battling fires tearing across the LA area as high Santa Ana winds topped 60mph in places. Three separate blazes have destroyed homes and caused tens of thousands of people to flee, leaving resources strained. Officials in and around the US city are preparing for the situation to worsen on Wednesday as California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency.

The fire that broke out on Tuesday evening near a nature reserve in the inland foothills north-east of LA has spread rapidly with a second blaze ripping through the city’s Pacific Palisades area while a third prompted evacuations in Sylmar, a San Fernando Valley community that is the northernmost area in Los Angeles.

Roads became impassable after scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot, some bearing suitcases. The 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 famous road.

Content creator, Moore, who lives in Studio City in the Malibu area, said she has never experienced anything like this in her life. The 29-year-old said: “Everyone is scared. I saw a video where hundreds of people abandoned their cars on the Pacific Coast Highway.

“It looked very apocalyptic, I have never seen footage like that in my life. We have never had a fire like this - it is the worst I have ever seen. It is very windy outside, there are no cars on the road - it is very scary out there.”

By Tuesday evening (January 7), the flames had spread into neighbouring Malibu and several people there were being treated for burn injuries, according to Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Erik Scott. Moore added: “In my area, we haven't been told anything, I do have a friend from Pasadena staying with me as she was told to evacuate. Another fire just sparked up in Woodland Hills which is being evacuated right now and that area isn't too far from here.”

As of Wednesday morning, more than 200,000 people were without power in Los Angeles County, according to the tracking website PowerOutage.us, because of the strong winds. Recent dry winds, including the notorious Santa Anas, have contributed to warmer-than-average temperatures in Southern California, where there has been very little rain so far this season.

Southern California has not seen more than 0.1in of rain since early May. The causes of all three fires are under investigation.