More than 100,000 residents have evacuated due ongoing life-threatening wildfires in Los Angeles County and more are expected, Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Erik Scott told CNN.
Six fires were reported, including the latest, the Sunset Fire, which sprung on top of the iconic Hollywood Hills and the Woodley Fire, both of which began Wednesday (January 8) night.
“You need to evacuate early. Don’t wait to be told,” Scott said. “Right now, people are very awake to the potential, and if you see smoke, you smell smoke, get into that ready-set-go.”
At least five people have died and "likely more" are expected in relation to the six wildfires reported in Los Angeles County, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said while speaking to CNN's Anderson Cooper in Altadena, as the Eaton Fire burned through neighborhoods Wednesday night.
“Five dead, likely more. Just complete and utter devastation, and I’ve been to a lot of these fires, a lot, going back to Paradise. This approximates Paradise," Newsom said, comparing the fires to the 2018 Camp Fire in Paradise, the deadliest wildfire in state history.
“It’s not numeric,” Newsom said of his comparison between the ongoing wildfires to Paradise. “It’s just the feeling – the sense of loss, place, belonging.”
The Eaton and Palisades fires were reported to have caused the most devastation among the six reported wildfires.
The Eaton fire was reported to have burned about 10,600 acres, according to Cal Fire, and is responsible for the five deaths already confirmed, CNN reports. The Palisades fire, which is reported to have stretched to more than 17,000 acres between Malibu and Santa Monica, has destroyed at least 1,000 structures, making it the most destructive wildfire to ever hit Los Angeles County.
The other fires include the Hurst Fire, which started Tuesday (January 7) and burned more than 505 acres; and the Lidia Fire, which began Wednesday afternoon and burned at least 80 acres.