LOS ANGELES — Wildfires that ripped through the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles forced many Hollywood stars, including Mark Hamill, Mandy Moore and James Woods, to evacuate their homes.
California firefighters are battling wind-whipped fires tearing across the area, destroying homes, clogging roadways as tens of thousands fled and straining resources as the fires burned uncontained early Wednesday.
The Pacific Palisades neighborhood is a hillside area along the coast dotted with celebrity residences and memorialized by the Beach Boys in their 1960s hit “Surfin’ USA.” In the frantic haste to get to safety, roadways became impassable when scores of people abandoned their vehicles and fled on foot, some toting suitcases.
“Evacuated Malibu so last minute,” wrote Hamill in an Instagram post Tuesday night. “Small fires on both sides of the road as we approached (the Pacific Coast Highway).”
Stars who have homes in the area include Adam Sandler, Ben Affleck, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.
Officials didn’t give an estimate of structures damaged or destroyed in the wildfire, but they said about 30,000 residents were under evacuation orders and more than 13,000 structures were under threat.
The fire burned down Temescal Canyon, a popular hiking area surrounded by dense neighborhoods of multimillion-dollar homes. Flames jumped famous Sunset Boulevard and burned parts of the Palisades Charter High School, which has been featured in many Hollywood productions including the 1976 horror movie “Carrie,” the 2003 remake of “Freaky Friday” and the TV series “Teen Wolf.”
Woods posted footage Tuesday of flames burning through bushes and past palm trees on a hill near his home. The towering orange flames billowed among the landscaped yards between the homes.
“Standing in my driveway, getting ready to evacuate,” Woods said in the short video on X. Later, he added: “It tests your soul, losing everything at once, I must say.”
Mandy Moore wrote early morning on Instagram, “Evacuated and safe with kids, dogs and cats. Praying and grateful for the first responders.”
Film studios canceled two movie premieres due to the fire and windy weather, and the Los Angeles Unified School District said it temporarily relocated students from three campuses in the Pacific Palisades area.