Los Angeles firefighters and others tackling the Pacific Palisades fire had to use a bulldozer to clear a path to hillier areas after residents abandoned their cars.
The fire, which started Tuesday, has spread to at least 2,920 acres in the western L.A. community, per the Los Angeles Fire Department. The fire is inflamed by wind as strong as 100 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
The Pacific Palisades neighborhood has limited ways in and out, which complicated attempts by residents to flee.
“The problem with Pacific Palisades, which is something we’ve been dealing with for a long time, is that the ways out are extremely limited,” Sue Kohl, president of the volunteer Pacific Palisades Community Council, told the Los Angeles Times.
Some fleeing residents were told to abandon their cars.
“Cops began running down the road telling anyone stuck in traffic, ‘Run for your lives!’ This is like an apocalypse,” resident Ellen Delosh-Bacher told the L.A. paper.
Stranded cars made it difficult for fire trucks and other equipment to get through.
“What’s happening is people take their keys with them as if they’re in a parking lot. This is not a parking lot. We really need people to move their cars. If you leave your car behind, leave the key in there so a guy like me can move your car so that these fire trucks can get up there,” actor Steve Guttenberg, who starred in four “Police Academy” movies, told KTLA.
About 30 parked cars were cleared off Palisades Drive and Sunset Boulevard by L.A. County bulldozers, reported LAT.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.