UPDATED with latest: Reports of injuries have begun to filter out from the front lines of the Palisades Fire, which has destroyed many parts of its namesake enclave, including portions of Palisades Village and, up the coast a bit, The Reel Inn and Topanga Ranch Motel on PCH at Topanga Canyon Boulevard.
The blaze continued to spread, fanned by high winds that topped out at 38 mph in the Palisades, 56 mph in Topanga and 59 mph at the Santa Monica Airport at 9:34 p.m. In Eastern Malibu, Saddle Peak clocked gusts to 98 mph at 9:37 p.m. Those wind speeds are expected to increase in the coming hours before lessening somewhat just before dawn. Winds are expected to remain high until Wednesday evening in most areas, with some pockets seeing elevated gusts through Friday.
As a result of the firestorm, a 25-year-old female firefighter sustained a serious head injury as a result of the Palisades Fire. She was treated at the scene and taken to a hospital for further evaluation and treatment, according to Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Capt. Erik Scott.
Scott also said multiple burn victims were reported walking toward Duke’s Malibu restaurant at approximately 9 p.m. Incident operations redirected medical resources to the location to provide evaluation and treatment.
The City of Santa Monica has issued an evacuation order for all areas of the city north of San Vicente. “Evacuation Order: Immediate threat to life. This is a lawful order to LEAVE NOW. The area is closed to public access.”
See the map below from the Santa Monica Police Department for the exact parameters of the order (in red) as well as the area north of Montana, which is under an evacuation warning. Per the city, an evacuation warning is defined thusly: “Potential threat to life and/or property. Those who require additional time to evacuate, and those with pets and livestock should leave now.”
All Malibu schools will be closed again tomorrow due to the continuing winds and the Palisades Fire, according to the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District. Even as today’s devastating Palisades Fire has scorched close to 3,000 acres and prompted evacuations through the Pacific Palisades and Topanga “get set” warnings north to Calabasas, a new blaze is spreading rapidly in the hills above Altadena. Multiple evacuations have already been issued in Altadena itself and even a portion of Pasadena. See portions in red in map below. Evacuation warnings have been issued down to the 210 Freeway in Pasadena proper. See areas in yellow below. Meanwhile on the west side, the Palisades Fire has reached the campus of Pali High, with CBS News National Correspondent sharing video of the conflagration. PREVIOUSLY at 6:30 p.m. :The size of the Palisades Fire and its evacuation zone have nearly doubled in size in just under two hours. From 1,260 acres just before 3 p.m. today, the fire exploded to 2,920 acres at 6:30 p.m. Likewise, while the “must leave” list included most of the Palisades and a section of the Malibu coast moving west, at 6 p.m. the evacuation orders were expanded to include most of Topanga Canyon and the Malibu coast past Las Flores Canyon to just east of the pier. See updated chart, with evacuation orders in red and evacuation orders in yellow, directly below. Source link
