Evacuations soar in the San Fernando Valley, Brentwood as Palisades fire extends to Day 5 – Los Angeles Daily News
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Trending: Update: Eaton, Palisades fires slow as containment grows, 16 dead; firefighters prepare for new winds The deadly Palisades fire grew to 23,654 acres by late Saturday afternoon, with evacuations expanding rapidly in Encino, Tarzana and Brentwood since Friday night as flames lit up ridge lines and threatened homes in Mandeville Canyon.Six helicopters flew throughout the night, dropping water from the Encino reservoir on the blaze as it entered its 5th day Saturday.The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner on Saturday evening reported there have been 16 confirmed deaths from the wind-driven Palisades and Eaton fires that started Tuesday, including 11 attributed to the Eaton fire. The death count from Eaton increased by five from Friday.Containment grew from 8% to 11% overnight, according to Cal Fire. But despite the aerial firefighting and 100 engines surging into the Mandeville Canyon area, the flames spread by approximately 1,000 acres overnight into Saturday, said Cal Fire’s Todd Hopkins.At least one large home in Mandeville Canyon surrounded by lush vegetation was shown being consumed by the blaze Saturday on KCAL TV.See evacuation areas hereThe fire was approaching the area where the 101 and 405 freeways meet. Officials tallied a total of 153,000 people under evacuation orders in the Palisades and Eaton fires as of late Saturday afternoon.
While evacuation zones were expanded, and many people in the San Fernando Valley and Brentwood reportedly left voluntarily, Cal Fire reported that UCLA students were not ordered to leave, though campus residents were on high alert and were instructed to prepare essentials.The VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System said that, as a proactive measure, it had relocated veterans from various housing and care facilities on the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center Campus.“Veterans have been temporarily relocated to alternative housing and care facilities, both within the VA system and in collaboration with community partners,” the agency said in a statement.To the west, the Palisades fire had reached the Franklin fire burn scar in Malibu, and it wouldn’t advance further in that area because the vegetation was burned by the earlier fire in December, authorities said during a Saturday evening community meeting. Also Saturday, authorities said the Palisades fire showed minimal activity in the Topanga Canyon area. Firefighters were removing fuel to limit any progression of blaze.Authorities Saturday also issued another advisory telling drone operators not to operate in fire areas.Since the start of the Palisades fire, there have been 48 drone incursions as of Saturday evening, according to Kenichi Haskett, a public information officer for LA County Fire. In some instances, multiple drones have to be cleared. Each case of incursions leads to the mandatory grounding of all firefighting aircraft within the surrounding 1,000-5,000 acres for an average of 15-30 minutes.On Thursday, Jan. 9, a Super Scooper firefighting plane was grounded after it collided with a drone illegally flying over the Palisades fire area. The aircraft, which can drop 1,600 gallons of water at a time and replenish its supply in five minutes, will likely be out of use for the remainder of the Palisades fire.Operating drones is illegal when the Federal Aviation Administration issues Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs). The FAA has issued TFRs to the areas of Santa Monica and Altadena. Pilots who violate TFRs could face warnings, fines, or certificate suspensions or revocations.“Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting & cause air operations to cease. When drones interfere w/ firefighting efforts, a wildfire has the potential to grow & cause more damage,” the LA County Fire Department posted on X.With the Pacific Ocean in the background, dozens of Pacific Palisades homes are piles of rubble on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos and his daughter, Charlotte, react as they see their burned-out neighborhood on Boedoin Street in Pacific Palisades after fires tore through it last week. Their 1927 Spanish-style home was destroyed. “I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Chris Tragos said on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. ”I want this community to survive this, but I dont know how,” he said as his voice trailed off. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Fire crews monitor the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Anita Bajpai hugs her husband, Brett Peterson, after discovering on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, that her 1940s-era childhood home survived the Pacific Palisades fires. Maps indicated it was in the fire zone but only a garage apartment in the back was destroyed. Bajpai’s mother, who is safe, lives there now. The couple are from Orange County. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos and his daughter, Charlotte, check out their home on Boedoin Street in Pacific Palisades after fires tore through their neighborhood last week. Their 1927 Spanish-style home was destroyed. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Charlotte Tragos, 19, gets emotional on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, after discovering part of a thank-you letter she hastily wrote to firefighters letting them know her family got out safely, survived the Pacific Palisades blaze. Her home did not survive. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos checks out his friend and neighbor’s burned Rivian electric truck, the same ar he has, in Pacific Palisades on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Show Caption1 of 7With the Pacific Ocean in the background, dozens of Pacific Palisades homes are piles of rubble on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Expand ‘I never thought the whole town would burn’Mark Schlundt, 55, has stayed in his Mandeville Canyon neighborhood since the fire began on Tuesday, wanting to stay close to the home his family has had since 1971.“I didn’t want to leave unless I had to,” he said on Saturday.His father bought the land their home sits on in 1968, designing the home the family moved into three years later when Schlundt was 2 years old.He feared that if he left the neighborhood, he wouldn’t be able to get back in.He rushed to the area from Humboldt, where he spends part of his time. The home was safe, with firefighters providing structure defense in his yard and others along the street.“It was just a relief to my heart to come down here and see my house and my neighbor’s house not on fire,” Schlundt said. But, he added, “When sunrise came and the flames got huge near the bottom, I said, I’m getting out of here.” He retreated down the hill.Schlundt went to Palisades High School and has grown up around the area. In a calmer moment of the continuously shifting scenario, he found his grief catching up to him.“I finally had a moment to cry about everything. All the places I grew up going in the Palisades are gone, where I went to high school, all the stores,” Schlundt said. “I never thought the whole town would burn.”In November he learned he would no longer be covered by his fire insurance come March.On the hill sloping upwards above La Condesa Drive, hand crews, including an inmate crew, were putting in hand lines. They worked to separate the burned areas, putting out hotspots so that embers would not fly later when the winds pick up. The charred hillside they mopped up is merely feet away from homes.One firefighter noted late Saturday morning that it was lucky the wind was cooperating – so far.‘It really freaked people out’In an area of Brentwood located above the Encino Hills neighborhood, Jonathan Sands was one of the few who remained. The neighborhood, on the cusp of Encino, has many older residents, who “panicked” and packed up, Sand said.“When they did the evacuation call, you could see flames. And it really freaked people out,” he said. The fires have been going on for seven days, so a lot of people had their cars packed up, were ready and when the evacuation came in they bolted, they got scared.”Sands, a real estate agent born and raised in the area, was prepared to leave, but hoped not to have to. He got his artwork out of his home, had friends pick up one of his cars and had his other car packed and ready to go should he need to leave.“I’m staying. I’m going to save my house,” he said. “I don’t have much in the way of insurance. I have about $2 million coverage on a $7 million home, that’s all I could get.”Sands said he is on the California Fair Plan, a basic state plan available to everyone, even those in high-risk areas, after being dropped by his previous insurer two years ago. He has been watering the vegetation on his property, watching the fire from the top of the hill in the neighborhood and keeping in touch with the firefighters in the area, who he says are “doing an excellent job,” even offering up his home for them to use the bathroom.He was glad to see the fire personnel in his neighborhood, many of whom came from Utah to help fight the blaze, working to put in fire breaks and communicating with one another well.Trump is invited to tour devastated areasLos Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Saturday authorities have not determined whether the fires ravaging the county were intentionally set, but LASD detectives were working with the LA county and city fire departments, the Los Angeles Police Department, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to determine their cause.“We don’t want any gaps in information any and every clue is important,” Luna said. “If anybody out there has any information on anything suspicious, maybe there’s a conversation, maybe there’s a social media post, something that you think just doesn’t sound right, get it to us.”State Attorney General Rob Bonta in a news conference on Saturday morning warned businesses not to price gouge. He also sounded an alert to beware of phony contractors, fake insurance adjusters and other scammers looking to take advantage of wildfire victims. And he warned anyone looting homes in wildfire areas that they’ll be caught.Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Kathryn Barger sent a letter to President-Elect Donald Trump on Saturday, inviting him to see the wildfire recovery efforts and impact firsthand.“By accepting this invitation, Mr. President-Elect, you will join us in supporting our citizenry and thanking our heroic first responders, who have risked their own lives to save others. We would also ask you, as our President, to stand with the people of Los Angeles County as we set our course to rebuild,” wrote Barger, a Republican, in part.Officials with the J. Paul Getty Trust said Saturday afternoon that the Getty Center near Brentwood and the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades have continued to survive the Palisades Fire so far.“It was a watchful but fortunately uneventful night up here at the Getty Center. We’ve been told to anticipate stronger winds later in the day and are closely monitoring the situation. Our galleries are safe and protected,” the statement said. “Aside from a few hot spots, the Villa remains stable.”Some 3,712 personnel have been assigned to battle the Palisades Fire.A “Do Not Drink” notice has been issued in the Pacific Palisades and other evacuated areas because of the heavy ash and debris that could have contaminated the water supply. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is distributing bottled water at the Westwood Recreation Center and the Brentwood Country Club.Additional evacuation shelters were opened in the San Fernando Valley: The Van Nuys/Sherman Oaks Recreation Center at 14201 Huston Street in Sherman Oaks and Lanark Recreation Center at 21816 Lanark Street in Canoga Park. An evacuation site for large animals also was opened in the valley at the Hansen Dam in Pacoima.This is a developing story. Please check back for more.City News Service contributed to this report.Related Articles
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The deadly Palisades fire grew to 23,654 acres by late Saturday afternoon, with evacuations expanding rapidly in Encino, Tarzana and Brentwood since Friday night as flames lit up ridge lines and threatened homes in Mandeville Canyon.Six helicopters flew throughout the night, dropping water from the Encino reservoir on the blaze as it entered its 5th day Saturday.The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner on Saturday evening reported there have been 16 confirmed deaths from the wind-driven Palisades and Eaton fires that started Tuesday, including 11 attributed to the Eaton fire. The death count from Eaton increased by five from Friday.Containment grew from 8% to 11% overnight, according to Cal Fire. But despite the aerial firefighting and 100 engines surging into the Mandeville Canyon area, the flames spread by approximately 1,000 acres overnight into Saturday, said Cal Fire’s Todd Hopkins.At least one large home in Mandeville Canyon surrounded by lush vegetation was shown being consumed by the blaze Saturday on KCAL TV.See evacuation areas hereThe fire was approaching the area where the 101 and 405 freeways meet. Officials tallied a total of 153,000 people under evacuation orders in the Palisades and Eaton fires as of late Saturday afternoon.While evacuation zones were expanded, and many people in the San Fernando Valley and Brentwood reportedly left voluntarily, Cal Fire reported that UCLA students were not ordered to leave, though campus residents were on high alert and were instructed to prepare essentials.The VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System said that, as a proactive measure, it had relocated veterans from various housing and care facilities on the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center Campus.“Veterans have been temporarily relocated to alternative housing and care facilities, both within the VA system and in collaboration with community partners,” the agency said in a statement.To the west, the Palisades fire had reached the Franklin fire burn scar in Malibu, and it wouldn’t advance further in that area because the vegetation was burned by the earlier fire in December, authorities said during a Saturday evening community meeting. Also Saturday, authorities said the Palisades fire showed minimal activity in the Topanga Canyon area. Firefighters were removing fuel to limit any progression of blaze.Authorities Saturday also issued another advisory telling drone operators not to operate in fire areas.Since the start of the Palisades fire, there have been 48 drone incursions as of Saturday evening, according to Kenichi Haskett, a public information officer for LA County Fire. In some instances, multiple drones have to be cleared. Each case of incursions leads to the mandatory grounding of all firefighting aircraft within the surrounding 1,000-5,000 acres for an average of 15-30 minutes.On Thursday, Jan. 9, a Super Scooper firefighting plane was grounded after it collided with a drone illegally flying over the Palisades fire area. The aircraft, which can drop 1,600 gallons of water at a time and replenish its supply in five minutes, will likely be out of use for the remainder of the Palisades fire.Operating drones is illegal when the Federal Aviation Administration issues Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs). The FAA has issued TFRs to the areas of Santa Monica and Altadena. Pilots who violate TFRs could face warnings, fines, or certificate suspensions or revocations.“Drones pose a serious risk to firefighting & cause air operations to cease. When drones interfere w/ firefighting efforts, a wildfire has the potential to grow & cause more damage,” the LA County Fire Department posted on X.With the Pacific Ocean in the background, dozens of Pacific Palisades homes are piles of rubble on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos and his daughter, Charlotte, react as they see their burned-out neighborhood on Boedoin Street in Pacific Palisades after fires tore through it last week. Their 1927 Spanish-style home was destroyed. “I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Chris Tragos said on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. ”I want this community to survive this, but I dont know how,” he said as his voice trailed off. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Fire crews monitor the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Anita Bajpai hugs her husband, Brett Peterson, after discovering on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, that her 1940s-era childhood home survived the Pacific Palisades fires. Maps indicated it was in the fire zone but only a garage apartment in the back was destroyed. Bajpai’s mother, who is safe, lives there now. The couple are from Orange County. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos and his daughter, Charlotte, check out their home on Boedoin Street in Pacific Palisades after fires tore through their neighborhood last week. Their 1927 Spanish-style home was destroyed. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Charlotte Tragos, 19, gets emotional on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, after discovering part of a thank-you letter she hastily wrote to firefighters letting them know her family got out safely, survived the Pacific Palisades blaze. Her home did not survive. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chris Tragos checks out his friend and neighbor’s burned Rivian electric truck, the same ar he has, in Pacific Palisades on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
With the Pacific Ocean in the background, dozens of Pacific Palisades homes are piles of rubble on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Mark Schlundt, 55, has stayed in his Mandeville Canyon neighborhood since the fire began on Tuesday, wanting to stay close to the home his family has had since 1971.“I didn’t want to leave unless I had to,” he said on Saturday.His father bought the land their home sits on in 1968, designing the home the family moved into three years later when Schlundt was 2 years old.He feared that if he left the neighborhood, he wouldn’t be able to get back in.He rushed to the area from Humboldt, where he spends part of his time. The home was safe, with firefighters providing structure defense in his yard and others along the street.“It was just a relief to my heart to come down here and see my house and my neighbor’s house not on fire,” Schlundt said. But, he added, “When sunrise came and the flames got huge near the bottom, I said, I’m getting out of here.” He retreated down the hill.Schlundt went to Palisades High School and has grown up around the area. In a calmer moment of the continuously shifting scenario, he found his grief catching up to him.“I finally had a moment to cry about everything. All the places I grew up going in the Palisades are gone, where I went to high school, all the stores,” Schlundt said. “I never thought the whole town would burn.”In November he learned he would no longer be covered by his fire insurance come March.On the hill sloping upwards above La Condesa Drive, hand crews, including an inmate crew, were putting in hand lines. They worked to separate the burned areas, putting out hotspots so that embers would not fly later when the winds pick up. The charred hillside they mopped up is merely feet away from homes.One firefighter noted late Saturday morning that it was lucky the wind was cooperating – so far.In an area of Brentwood located above the Encino Hills neighborhood, Jonathan Sands was one of the few who remained. The neighborhood, on the cusp of Encino, has many older residents, who “panicked” and packed up, Sand said.“When they did the evacuation call, you could see flames. And it really freaked people out,” he said. The fires have been going on for seven days, so a lot of people had their cars packed up, were ready and when the evacuation came in they bolted, they got scared.”Sands, a real estate agent born and raised in the area, was prepared to leave, but hoped not to have to. He got his artwork out of his home, had friends pick up one of his cars and had his other car packed and ready to go should he need to leave.“I’m staying. I’m going to save my house,” he said. “I don’t have much in the way of insurance. I have about $2 million coverage on a $7 million home, that’s all I could get.”Sands said he is on the California Fair Plan, a basic state plan available to everyone, even those in high-risk areas, after being dropped by his previous insurer two years ago. He has been watering the vegetation on his property, watching the fire from the top of the hill in the neighborhood and keeping in touch with the firefighters in the area, who he says are “doing an excellent job,” even offering up his home for them to use the bathroom.He was glad to see the fire personnel in his neighborhood, many of whom came from Utah to help fight the blaze, working to put in fire breaks and communicating with one another well.Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Saturday authorities have not determined whether the fires ravaging the county were intentionally set, but LASD detectives were working with the LA county and city fire departments, the Los Angeles Police Department, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to determine their cause.“We don’t want any gaps in information any and every clue is important,” Luna said. “If anybody out there has any information on anything suspicious, maybe there’s a conversation, maybe there’s a social media post, something that you think just doesn’t sound right, get it to us.”State Attorney General Rob Bonta in a news conference on Saturday morning warned businesses not to price gouge. He also sounded an alert to beware of phony contractors, fake insurance adjusters and other scammers looking to take advantage of wildfire victims. And he warned anyone looting homes in wildfire areas that they’ll be caught.Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Kathryn Barger sent a letter to President-Elect Donald Trump on Saturday, inviting him to see the wildfire recovery efforts and impact firsthand.“By accepting this invitation, Mr. President-Elect, you will join us in supporting our citizenry and thanking our heroic first responders, who have risked their own lives to save others. We would also ask you, as our President, to stand with the people of Los Angeles County as we set our course to rebuild,” wrote Barger, a Republican, in part.Officials with the J. Paul Getty Trust said Saturday afternoon that the Getty Center near Brentwood and the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades have continued to survive the Palisades Fire so far.“It was a watchful but fortunately uneventful night up here at the Getty Center. We’ve been told to anticipate stronger winds later in the day and are closely monitoring the situation. Our galleries are safe and protected,” the statement said. “Aside from a few hot spots, the Villa remains stable.”Some 3,712 personnel have been assigned to battle the Palisades Fire.A “Do Not Drink” notice has been issued in the Pacific Palisades and other evacuated areas because of the heavy ash and debris that could have contaminated the water supply. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is distributing bottled water at the Westwood Recreation Center and the Brentwood Country Club.Additional evacuation shelters were opened in the San Fernando Valley: The Van Nuys/Sherman Oaks Recreation Center at 14201 Huston Street in Sherman Oaks and Lanark Recreation Center at 21816 Lanark Street in Canoga Park. An evacuation site for large animals also was opened in the valley at the Hansen Dam in Pacoima.This is a developing story. Please check back for more.City News Service contributed to this report.Copyright © 2025 MediaNews Group
