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Palisades Fire evacuation zone expands, includes iconic museum

More than 36,000 acres of Los Angeles County have burned since Tuesday.
A helicopter drops water on the Palisades Fire in Mandeville Canyon, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles.
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The massive Palisades Fire, the largest in Los Angeles County history, is continuing to grow as officials ordered additional evacuations late Friday.

The latest evacuations now include the Brentwood community and the Getty Museum. The evacuation zone now goes to the busy 405 freeway. As of late Friday, the Palisades Fire had consumed over 21,000 acres of land.

It was the largest of several active fires burning in Los Angeles County. Officials say that 11 people have died and thousands of structures have burned as a result of this week's wildfires.

To prevent looting, a 6 p.m. through 6 a.m. curfew has been established in evacuation zones.

Fire status as of late Friday:

  • Eaton Fire, North Pasadena and Altadena: 14,117 acres, 3% contained
  • Palisades Fire, Pacific Palisades: 21,317 acres, 8% contained
  • Kenneth Fire, West Hills area: 1,052 acres, 50% contained
  • Lidia Fire, Acton area: 395 acres, 98% contained, forward spread stopped
  • Hurst Fire, Sylmar area: 771 acres. 70% contained

Getty Museum prepared for wildfire

The museum's employees quickly closed on Tuesday when the wildfire began encroaching on its property. Museum officials say no property damage has occurred on site, and the museum's artifacts are safe.

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"Fortunately, Getty had made extensive efforts to clear brush from the surrounding area as part of its fire mitigation efforts throughout the year," the museum said earlier this week. "Some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but no structures are on fire, and staff and the collection remain safe. Additional fire prevention measures in place at the Villa include water storage on-site. Irrigation was immediately deployed throughout the grounds Tuesday morning. Museum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air handling systems. The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections."

Impact to sports

Saturday's games hosted by the Clippers and Lakers, two Los Angeles-area NBA teams, were postponed.

The Los Angeles Kings postponed their home game earlier this week against the Calgary Flames.

The Los Angeles Rams' home playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings was moved to Arizona on Monday, marking the first time an NFL postseason game has moved venues due to a natural disaster.

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LA County no longer under red flag warning

While wind gusts nearing 90 mph fueled the flames on Wednesday, those winds have subsided in the Los Angeles are, perhaps giving firefighters an opportunity to better contain the fires.

Areas north and east of Los Angeles remain under a red flag warning, meaning conditions are favorable for wildfire development. The National Weather Service says winds could gust up to 65 mph in inland Orange County.