Fast-Moving Wildfire Breaks Out In Pacific Palisades; Evacuation Orders Issued; Portion Of PCH Closed

With winds forecast between 40 and 60 miles per hour, a wildfire broke out in Pacific Palisades near Temescal Canyon at about 10:30 this morning.

What began as a 10 acre blaze in the area of N Piedra Morada Dr and quickly spread to become a 200 acre blaze in less than an hour, threatening homes with smoke blowing West toward the Getty Villa. Eastbound Pacific Coast Highway has been closed at Topanga Canyon Boulevard due to that brush fire burning in the Pacific Palisades area.

Evacuation orders were issued at about noon for the area around Piedra Morada, according to multiple news outlets. Areas near Topanga to the west were reportedly under evacuation warnings.

Local TV stations broke into coverage of former President Jimmy Carter’s memorial services to cover the incident, with remote crews staging shots from the beach parking lots on PCH with a billowing black plume in the background. The smoke could also be seen across most of West Los Angeles.

Actor James Woods posted close-up video of black smoke coming over a ridge in one neighborhood.

The National Weather Service in has been warning for several days that today’s windstorm would bring extreme fire conditions as it couples very high winds with very low humidity. Winds were clocked at 46 mph in the Palisades this morning.