Emergency declared as "apocalyptic" fire engulfs wealthy Los Angeles neighborhood

A brush fire, goaded by a wind storm, has swallowed up much of Palisades Park, an affluent community in northwest Los Angeles, and forced the evacuation of around 30,000 residents from the area. Both the state of California and the City of Los Angeles declared states of emergency Tuesday, with municipal, state and federal agencies coordinating to deal with the crisis.

“We’ve declared a state of emergency to amplify our response to this devastating fire and clear a path for a rapid recovery,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement Tuesday evening. “ To the thousands of families impacted by this horrific fire — the City of Los Angeles is providing resources and shelter as this emergency continues. To the hundreds of brave firefighters and first responders who have been responding all day to this blaze — we thank you. The City is working aggressively to confront this emergency.”

President Joe Biden said shortly afterwards that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had approved a grant "to support areas that are impacted and help reimburse the state of California for the immediate firefighting costs."

The Palisades fire was first reported late Thursday morning and has grown to at least 2,921 acres, with zero containment as of Wednesday. Major Los Angeles roadways are either closed or jammed with cars full of people fleeing the fire, with many having abandoned their vehicles to walk on foot. Nearly 300,000 energy customers were in the dark this morning, according to the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power.

Fires have also broken out in Sylmar and the hills above Altadena, threatening more homes and residents. The conflagration was sparked by a combination of dry conditions and powerful winds that have become more frequent in recent years, with many scientists pointing to the effects of climate change.

No deaths have been reported, but fire officials said they had reports of multiple burn victims. The scene is said to be "apocalyptic," with firefighters battling overnight and through the day to contain its reach.