Catastrophic wildfires across Los Angeles this week have killed at least 10 people, forced 180,000 to flee their homes, and destroyed thousands of buildings.
The Palisades Fire is one of the most destructive blazes to ever hit LA, with shocking footage shared across the world of the chaos caused by its devastating flames.
Here, reveals the full timeline of the wildfires, from the first spark to the shock arson claims that are dominating headlines.
The chaos began on Tuesday morning when a fire sparked around 10.30am in the Pacific Palisades, a neighborhood of Los Angeles located between the Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean.
A perfect storm of overgrown vegetation, dry conditions and uncharacteristic winds whipped up what has now became the most devastating fire in LA history.
Footage stitched together from various live webcams, shows how a small plume of grey smoke began rising in a ‘back garden’ on the city’s outskirts on Tuesday morning.
At first the smoke seemed innocuous, but within minutes the plume had developed into a thick cloud as the flames began tearing through bone-dry shrubbery.
Before long, the City of Angels was ablaze, consuming more than 34,000 acres and destroying over 5,300 structures.
Firefighters were able to establish the first bit of containment Thursday, but the Palisades Fire continues to rage.
Catastrophic wildfires across Los Angeles this week have killed at least 10 people, forced 180,000 to flee their homes, and destroyed thousands of buildings
A perfect storm of overgrown vegetation, dry conditions and uncharacteristic winds whipped up what has now became the most devastating fire in LA history
A Pacific Palisades resident, documenting her evacuation, covers her face with a towel as heavy smoke and flames engulf her neighborhood
The chaos began on Tuesday morning when a fire sparked around 10.30am in the Pacific Palisades. Flames rise as the Palisades Fire advances on homes in the neighborhood on Tuesday, January 7, 2025
A firefighter battles the Palisades Fire as it burns a structure in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday, January 7, 2025
Flames from the Palisades Fire burn a residential building on Sunset Boulevard amid a powerful windstorm on Thursday, January 9, 2025 in LA’s Pacific Palisades neighborhood
The Eaton Fire erupted near Pasadena and Altadena around 6pm Tuesday and has no containment. It has burned more than 5,000 homes, buildings and vehicles.
National Guard troops were patrolling the streets of Altadena before dawn on Friday after being called in to help protect property in the fire evacuation zone.
Troops in camouflage were posted at intersections in the city hard-hit by the Eaton Fire near Jeeps, Humvees and other military vehicles. At least 20 arrests have been made for looting and other thefts in areas where the fire raged.
Of the 10 deaths so far, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley confirmed two were in the Palisades Fire. County officials said the Eaton Fire had killed five.
Harrowing footage from the devastating fires shows cadaver dogs and crews are searching through rubble to see if there are more victims.
Malibu – a beachside paradise just days ago – was obliterated by the inferno, its signature rows of palm trees reduced to blackened stumps. Rows of glitzy waterfront houses now lay in charred ruins.
Dozens of blocks were flattened in the upscale Pacific Palisades neighborhood moments away, home to a slew of A-list celebrities. For many, only the outlines of homes and their chimneys remain.
A slew of notable locations, including Sunset Boulevard that splits the upscale Pacific Palisades, were engulfed in punishing flames that tore through residential and commercial areas alike and reduced buildings to burnt-out husks.
Banks, restaurants, gas stations and homes were left in smoldering ruins along the iconic boulevard, where bulldozers were forced to remove abandoned luxury motors, forging a path for emergency services and firefighters.
A Burning apartment building from the Eaton Fire on January 8, 2025. The Eaton Fire erupted near Pasadena and Altadena around 6pm Tuesday and has no containment. It has burned more than 5,000 homes, buildings and vehicles
A Bank of America is fully engulfed in flames along Lake Ave. during the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles county, California on January 8, 2025
A home burns in the Eaton Fire on January 8, 2025 in Altadena, California
An apartment building burns during the Eaton fire in the Altadena of LA on Wednesday
Banks, restaurants, gas stations and homes were left in smoldering ruins along the iconic Sunset Boulevard after the Palisades Fire ripped through
A McDonald’s restaurant in California was engulfed in flames on Tuesday evening, as the Eaton Fire broke out some 30 miles inland near Pasadena
As thousands were fleeing for their lives Tuesday night, a third fire erupted in the Sylmar area. The Hurst Fire, which started as a brush fire and quickly spread, has now expanded to more than 770 acres and is 37 per cent contained.
The fourth blaze – the Lidia Fire – erupted Wednesday afternoon between the Sierra Pelona and San Gabriel mountains. Firefighters say it is the smallest of the five infernos and is already 75 per cent under control.
Some of Hollywood’s biggest names have seen their beloved homes razed to the ground in the devastating wildfires that have swept through Los Angeles this week.
Paris Hilton, Anthony Hopkins, Tina Knowles, John Goodman, Candy Spelling, Milo Ventimiglia, and Miles Teller are among those whose homes were demolished.
Most of the affected celebrity homes appear to be in the eastern side of the Pacific Palisades, including Eugene Levy, Billy Crystal and Anna Faris’s properties.
On the west side of the Palisades, Leighton Meester and husband Adam Brody’s family home has burned to ashes as well as that of basketball plater Kawhi Leonard.
Meanwhile, Steve Guttenberg’s house up on The Summit area of the Palisades was also surrounded by the raging wildfires, but was miraculously spared.
President-elect Donald Trump lambasted Governor Gavin Newsom for focusing on environmental priorities like ‘worthless fish’ over those of Golden State residents
In this aerial view taken from a helicopter, burned homes are seen from above during the Palisades fire in Malibu, Los Angeles county, California on January 9, 2025
A Los Angeles County firefighting helicopter drops water to battle the Palisades wildfire in Pacific Palisades, California, USA, 7 January 2025
A Los Angeles County firefighter in front of a burning house while battling the Palisades wildfire
A car burns as the Eaton Fire moves through the area of Altadena in California on Wednesday
Joe Biden claimed that Los Angeles fire hydrants hadn’t run dry because of a water shortage, but due to power being cut to water pumps because of the killer wildfires
Oscar-nominated actor James Woods took to X with multiple posts detailing the damage as a fast-moving wildfire in the Los Angeles hillsides was exacerbated by a fierce windstorm in Southern California
Police Academy star Steve Guttenberg, 66, sprung into action as the blaze ripped through the Palisades community, opting to assist firefighters by moving cars in order to make room for the incoming fire trucks
Reality TV star Spencer Pratt , 41, and his wife Heidi Montag, 38, have lost their home in the ritzy neighborhood due to the raging wildfire
An American flag waves amongst the rubble of a prominent local shopping village in the Pacific Palisades
The raging infernos also led to fury over preparedness by Gavin Newsom with President-elect Donald Trump lambasting the California Governor in a Truth Social post Wednesday for focusing on environmental priorities like ‘worthless fish’ over those of Golden State residents.
Trump said the governor, who he referred to as ‘Gavin Newscum,’ a favorite of the Republican’s pet names, was at fault for the disaster.
‘Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way.’
Newson later became emotional when asked about Trump placing the blame on him for the disastrous, killer wildfires that have ravaged the state.
Speaking to Anderson Cooper amid the fires in Los Angeles Wednesday, Newsom was visibly hurt by the criticism.
‘People are literally fleeing. People have lost their lives. Kids lost their schools, families completely torn asunder, churches burned down, he said.’
Newsom avoided going further in on Trump: ‘I have a lot of thoughts and I know what I want to say… I won’t.’
He then raged at Trump for trying to ‘politicize’ the disaster, while contrasting him with Joe Biden.
‘I stood next to a President of the United States of America today, and I was proud to be with Joe Biden. And he had the backs of every single person in this community. He didn’t play politics, didn’t try to divide any of us.’
On Thursday evening, further disaster struck when the Kenneth Fire started burning near Calabasas – home to the Kardashians – and the Hidden Hills
Water is dropped by helicopter on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 202
Firefighters look out over the Kenneth Fire, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in the West Hills section of Los Angeles
The Kenneth Fire exploded to almost 1,000 acres within hours, displacing over 180,000 people
Rob Hoover, a Pacific Palisades, resident says he lost old family photos in the firestorm
The wildfires have completely devastated a prominent local shopping village in Palisades
An airtanker struggles to drop a load on the LA wildfires due to strong winds
Paris Hilton is among the celebrities who have lost their homes amid a series of deadly wind-fueled wildfires scorching select areas of Southern California. The waterfront residence owned by the This Is Paris star was ‘reduced to a pile of burning rubble’ due to the blazes that have been concentrated in the Los Angeles communities of Pacific Palisades and Malibu
On Thursday evening, further disaster struck when the Kenneth Fire started burning near Calabasas – home to the Kardashians – and the Hidden Hills.
The fire exploded to almost 1,000 acres within hours, displacing over 180,000 people.
None of the Kenneth Fire is contained and authorities say it is being investigated as an arson incident, with one suspect arrested.
The Sunset Fire also sparked late Wednesday night in the Hollywood Hills area, but firefighters knocked out the blaze on Thursday afternoon, allowing evacuation orders to be lifted.
As emergency services desperately grapple with the flames across Los Angeles, residents have been left to count the human cost.
Haunting video footage has emerged of two men and their dog trapped as hellish wildfires encircled their property in Los Angeles.
The chilling clip recorded from within the house showed how flames dozens of feet high surrounded the property, clearly visible through floor-to-ceiling windows, in a scene reminiscent of a Hollywood disaster movie.
The Sunset Fire (pictured) also sparked late Wednesday night in the Hollywood Hills area, but firefighters knocked out the blaze on Thursday afternoon, allowing evacuation orders to be lifted
Neighbors gather as a family digs through the rubble of their home that was burnt by the Eaton Fire, as powerful winds fueling devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area force people to evacuate, in Altadena, California on January 9, 2025
Fire crews battle the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles on Thursday
Burned-out cars and homes reduced to rubble by the Eaton Fire are seen in Altadena, California, on January 10, 2025
Massive wildfires that engulfed whole neighborhoods and displaced thousands in Los Angeles have killed at least 10 people, authorities said, as California’s National Guard soldiers readied to hit the streets to help quell disorder
Firefighters look out over the Kenneth Fire, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in the West Hills section of Los Angeles
A chilling clip recorded from within a LA house showed how flames dozens of feet high surrounded the property, clearly visible through floor-to-ceiling windows
The man, whose identity was not immediately known, can be heard telling his dog: ‘You’re going to be okay, alright?’
A LA resident can be seen battling the fires with a garden hose before they decide to flee
Another frightening moment showed trees in the yard on fire while sparks filled the night sky
The man, whose identity was not immediately known, can be heard telling his dog: ‘You’re going to be okay, alright?’, while instructing a second resident to stay away from the windows amid fears they could shatter.
Another video showed how a man abruptly left his luxurious $5million Pacific Palisades residence after he tried to prepare the home for the wildfires by spraying the whole place in water.
But three hours after the dousing the home, the backyard of the property was ripped apart by the fires. The man battle the flames with a garden hose before deciding the flee.
His friend said a prayer as a tree in the front yard caught fire while the whole of the street is thick with smoke with burning embers falling everywhere.