HIGH WAY TO HELL
Astonishing scene in LA as wildfires gut mansions and force 200,000 to flee
THIS was the scene in Los Angeles yesterday as wildfires raging through California turned a major freeway into a highway to hell .
Signs on Interstate 405 showed how close the flames lighting up the surrounding hills are coming to some of the city’s most famous landmarks.
Thousands of families, including a host of A-list celebrities, have fled as fires that have ripped through southern California for several days spread to the exclusive suburb of Bel-Air.
Heiress and reality TV star Paris Hilton and singer Lionel Richie are among those forced from homes in the area, which also counts Beyonce, Gwyneth Paltrow and Heidi Klum among its residents. Richie pulled out of a concert in Las Vegas to help his family. He told fans on Twitter: ‘Due to the devastating California wildfires, and helping family evacuate to a safer place, I unfortunately have to cancel my show.’
Miss Hilton shared a picture of the blaze on Instagram with the message: ‘This wild fire in LA is terrifying! This literally looks like Hell! My house is now being evacuated to get all of my pets out of there safely. Thank you to all the firefighters who are risking their lives to save ours. You are true heroes! My thoughts & prayers are with everyone affected by this horrible catastrophe.’
Four major blazes stretching from the edge of the city 60 miles north to Ventura have prompted the evacuation of 200,000 people and destroyed more than 150 homes since Monday.
Nearly 1,800 firefighters and a fleet of aircraft are fighting the flames but the blaze is only 5 per cent contained and an estimated 12,000 buildings are in danger.
A £21.5million estate and vineyard in Bel-Air owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch was evacuated after suffering damage, while 29 horses burnt to death inside the Padilla Ranch in Sylmar, in the San Fernando Valley.
Ranch owner Patricia Padilla told the Los Angeles Times: ‘All I could think about was the horses, the horses, the horses.
‘It felt like you were in the middle of hell with everything burning around you.’
LA’s deputy fire chief Charles Butler said fire crews and aircraft stopped the spread of the 475-acre blaze in Bel-Air. Pictures showed precious works of art being carried from some properties.
The world-famous Getty Museum – which has pieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Van Gogh and Turner among its collection – was closed yesterday but bosses said artworks had not removed as air filtration systems were protecting them from smoke damage. The museum is built on a stone and metal ridge and surrounded by fire-retardant plants to protect it.
Yesterday, the University of California, Los Angeles cancelled all classes, even though its campus is outside the evacuation zone.
There were fears that winds which had eased on Wednesday could return last night with gusts up to 80mph, making it impossible to fight the fires.
‘Everything is burning’