An early morning fire forced celebrities from their homes in Los Angeles, while the biggest fire, the Kincade Fire, is only 5% contained as it burns through Sonoma County.
Flames and thick black smoke—that’s what thousands of people in California faced as they scrambled to leave their homes.
Two major wildfires, fed by hurricane-force winds, are burning at opposite ends of the state.
California Governor Gavin Newsom stated, “43 counties now are impacted by Red Flag warnings and by these severe weather conditions.”
In the south, new evacuation orders have been issued in Los Angeles. The Getty Fire sparked early Monday morning, quickly scorching hundreds of acres. People were forced from their homes on the west side of the 405 freeway, near the Getty Center Museum.
Up north, in California wine country, the Kincade Fire is still raging and has driven nearly 200,000 people from their homes.
Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said, “You cannot fight this. Please evacuate. If you’re under an evacuation order you must leave.”
Wind gusts reached up to 93 miles-per-hour over the weekend which power company PG&E says forced them to cut the power out of an abundance of caution.
PG&E Director of Wildfire Operations Mark Quinlan said, “About 965,000 customers have been impacted at one time or another associated with this event.”
The company says forecasts for high winds Tuesday could force them to cut power to even more customers.
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.