Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was among the Southern California residents who had to leave their homes as mandatory evacuations were issued early Monday, after a “very dynamic fire” erupted on a hillside near the Getty Center museum, fire officials said.
The Los Angeles Fire Department is urging residents to evacuate neighborhoods on the city’s west side., due to the explosive blaze. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said at a news briefing he has seen about five burned homes since the Getty Fire began Monday, which he said was not caused by any homeless encampment or by anyone else who is unhoused.
The fire erupted around 1:30 a.m. local time in the Sepulveda Pass along Interstate 405 near the Getty Center Museum community and the hill-top golf community of Mountain Gate, according to LAFD spokesman Capt. Erik Scott.
By 11 a.m. ET, officials said it had already grown to encompass over 500 acres as more than 470 LAFD firefighters with assistance from neighboring agencies rushed to combat the blaze. Over 10,000 structures, both residential and commercial, were located in the mandatory evacuation zones that include the Mountain Gate, Mandeville Canyon, and Bundy areas in western LA County.
“If you’re in the mandatory evacuation zone and you’re still there watching this, you’re an idiot. Get the hell out,” L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz said at a news conference. “It’s way too dangerous.” – READ MORE