Wildfires devastate Los Angeles: 'Everything was on fire'

In an area famous for natural disasters, survivors of multiple massive wildfires in Los Angeles County described apocalyptic scenes and the horror of trying to outrun flames stoked by hurricane-like winds.

At least six wildfires continued to burn Thursday morning, four of them remaining out of control after consuming nearly 30,000 acres combined and destroying more than 2,000 structures, including multimillion-dollar mansions and businesses, in some of the priciest enclaves in America. Nearly 180,000 people in Los Angeles County were under mandatory evacuation and another 200,000 were under evacuation warnings Thursday morning.

At least five people were killed in one of the fires, officials said.

"It's astounding what's happening," President Joe Biden said during a news conference on Wednesday, during which he announced that he had signed an emergency disaster declaration.

6 blazes burning at once

At least six fires had burned around 42 square miles, roughly the size of San Francisco.

"This is one of the most destructive natural disasters in the history of Los Angeles," said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

The blazes began around 10:30 a.m. Pacific Time on Tuesday with the Palisades Fire and the Hurst Fire erupting around the same time miles apart, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The Palisades Fire -- burning in Pacific Palisades, about 20 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles along the Pacific Ocean -- had consumed more than 17,200 acres by Thursday morning and was 0% contained, fire officials reported. The Hurst Fire near San Fernando, about 22 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles, had burned over 800 acres and was 10% contained Thursday morning.

The Eaton Fire, the second-largest fire in the area, ignited just after 6 p.m. on Tuesday and like the other fires was fanned by strong Santa Ana winds that reached 98 mph in some areas, had grown to 10,600 acres and damaged or destroyed 1,000 structures, including homes and businesses, in Pasadena and Altadena, both about 11 miles east of downtown L.A. Five residents perished in the Eaton Fire, but officials did not disclose details of how they died.

The Eaton Fire was 0% contained on Thursday morning, according to Cal Fire.

A fourth blaze burning in Los Angeles County, the Woodley Fire, erupted at about 6:15 a.m. on Wednesday near Van Nuys in the San Fernando Valley and quickly spread to 30 acres. As of about 6 p.m. local time, the flames were considered "under control," according to Bass.

A fifth and sixth fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles County. The Sunset Fire broke out in the hills above West Hollywood around 6 p.m. local time It is at 43 acres and 0% containment as flames and smoke encroached on the dense residential area. The Lidia Fire, about 40 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, spread to over 340 acres Wednesday night, according to Cal Fire, but it was reported as 40% contained by midnight.

The Palisades Fire had by then spread to Malibu Beach, where a lifeguard station went up in flames and homes along the Pacific Coast Highway were also blazing like a string of Roman candles.

Chief Kristine Crowley of the Los Angeles Fire Department said an additional fire broke out Wednesday afternoon in the hills of Studio City, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, and destroyed two large homes. Crowley said firefighters quickly attacked the fire from the ground and the air and held it to one acre before completely extinguishing it.

The Palisades Fire had by then spread to Malibu Beach, where a lifeguard station went up in flames and homes along the Pacific Coast Highway were also blazing like a string of Roman candles.

'Not prepared for this type of widespread disaster'

In the tony business district of Pacific Palisades, shop after shop was on fire, including the community's high school and its largest supermarket. The Getty Villa, a museum filled with more than 125,000 priceless artifacts, was also being threatened as flames engulfed the hillside it is perched on.

ABC News reporters on the scene describe horrific scenes of destruction and chaos as everything appeared to be on fire at once, including luxury homes, trash bins, lines of palm trees and numerous vehicles. The fires were accompanied by an eerie soundtrack of blazes popping, broken gas lines hissing, buildings collapsing and winds roaring.

The devastation came even as fire departments in the area prepared for potential fires over the weekend, placing equipment and personnel in areas vulnerable to fires after the National Weather Service forecast high-risk fire danger due to a Santa Ana wind event that became the worst in more than a decade.

"No, L.A. County and all 29 fire departments in our country are not prepared for this type of widespread disaster," said Chief Jim McDonnell of the Los Angeles Police Department, adding that there were not enough firefighters to address all the fires burning in L.A. County.

Chief Kristine Crowley of the Los Angeles Fire Department said that in her 25 years as a firefighter, she had never experienced a disaster as far-reaching as the one that has now enveloped one of the most densely populated areas of the nation, home to more than 10 million people.

The wind, fires and terrain filled with bone-dry vegetation from lack of rain in the area had formed a perfect storm for the disaster, Crowl said.

"The fire is being fueled by a combination of strong winds and surrounding topography, which is making it extremely challenging for our personnel that are assigned to this incident," Crowley said.

The conflagrations caused officials to close several iconic landmarks around Los Angeles, including access to the Hollywood sign, the Los Angeles Zoo, Griffith Park and the Griffith Observatory.

'Everything was on fire'

Nearly 1.2 million customers were also without power midday on Wednesday due to burning trees falling on powerlines or Southern California Edison shutting down power in an attempt to prevent the fires from spreading, officials of the utility company said.

That number was closer to 400,000 by midnight, according to Poweroutage.us.

After signing the emergency declaration, Biden said he was sending in federal assistance to help suppress the fires, including 10 Navy helicopters.

The president also said fire crews from Oregon, Washington, Arizona and elsewhere were headed to Los Angeles County to help.

Actor Steve Guttenberg told ABC's "Good Morning America," that at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, it was a typically beautiful, sunny Southern California day. But 90 minutes later, he said, "Everything was black and the fire was raging."

"Everything was on fire on both sides," Guttenberg said of his path to safety. "I couldn't see more than three feet in front of my car. The smoke was so thick. It looked like a volcano was on the sides of the hills, and all of a sudden people were just fleeing. It was two miles of cars packed."

Los Angeles County's famed Sunset Boulevard, which runs through Pacific Palisades, was lined with cars Wednesday as desperate residents rushed to get out of harm's way. But firefighters said people, apparently fearful of getting trapped by the flames while sitting in a traffic jam, abandoned their cars on Sunset Boulevard, prompting fire crews to use a bulldozer to push vehicles out of the way and clear a path for first responders.

Pacific Palisades resident Tricia Rakusin told ABC News on Wednesday that when the fire started she began hosing down her home and the trees and shrubbery around it, but soon realized she and her family had to evacuate after seeing flames creeping up to her residence.

She said she fled down Sunset Boulevard only to get stuck in traffic.

"I've never been so petrified," Rakusin said. "It's absolutely unreal. We have never experienced anything like this in this area."

Rakusin's husband, Kenny, said that their home insurance carrier recently dropped them and other residents in the area because of the fire risks.

"We don't know whether our house is standing or not, but if it's not standing, I don't know what we're going to do," he said.