The flames that have engulfed Los Angeles over the past week have returned to the Pacific Palisades with force, moving rapidly northeastward and prompting new mandatory evacuations.
The latest order involves residents from Sunset Boulevard to the Encino Reservoir, and from the 405 Freeway to Mandeville Canyon, an area that includes the Getty Museum, Brentwood and the hills of the San Fernando Valley. In the past week, wildfires in the Los Angeles region have affected 12,000 structures and killed at least 11 people, according to the L.A Times.
The flames now also seriously threaten the Getty Center in Brentwood, which houses one of the city’s largest art collections. The building is complying with Friday night’s evacuation order and is currently closed: only emergency personnel are on site.
The last time the museum had to deal with fires was in 2019, when flames threatened outlying areas of the facility, but without affecting any of its collections. Earlier this week, the well-known Getty Villa also found itself in danger from the Palisades flames, but emerged largely unscathed–unlike many properties in the area, which were completely destroyed.
In Encino, moreover, the renewed spread of the blaze sowed chaos among local residents. As stated by John Sutter, president of the Neighborhood Council, “We didn’t think it was something that would really affect us until it did.” Residents wasted no time, quickly abandoning the area and their own homes.
Before the blaze intensified on Friday evening, the fire department had said it had made progress in fire management, thanks in part to the slowing of winds. Firefighter operations had also been aided by the use of aircraft capable of dumping water from above.
By yesterday afternoon, however, these aircraft were again grounded after authorities found unauthorized drones flying over the Santa Monica area. As the flames flare up again, moreover, local officials say the death toll could rise. At the moment, authorities have confirmed that five people were killed in the Palisades fire and six in the Eaton fire.
“We do, unfortunately, anticipate that deaths will go up because of the destruction that we’re seeing,” Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said.
Law enforcement sources later revealed to the LA Times that some of these fires may be arson in nature. Yesterday an arson suspect was arrested near the Kenneth Fire in Woodland Hills. However, while the investigation into the possibility of arson is ongoing, the suspect who was arrested near the Kenneth Fire on Friday has been exonerated. The theory that the fires have been deliberately started were promoted by some celebrities, including actors Henry Winkler, Alison Sweeney and singer Chris Brown.
In addition to fighting the flames, officials are trying to protect the extensive burned areas in Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Altadena, Pasadena and surrounding areas from potential looters. The Sheriff’s Department has also imposed a curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in mandatory evacuation zones.
