LA residents recall harrowing escape from wildfires as homes, businesses go up in flames: 'Like a war zone'
Two Los Angeles residents detailed their harrowing escape from a wildfire that ripped through their community, as they await word on the fate of their home and business.
Palisades Highlands residents Eric Robertson and Tricia Cosentino were forced to evacuate from their home on Tuesday, alongside thousands of others, as the flames approached their community. The pair described their abrupt departure during "America's Newsroom."
CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES RAGE ACROSS LOS ANGELES COUNTY, FORCING THOUSANDS TO EVACUATE THEIR HOMES
"We were scared to stay, and we were scared to leave," Cosentino told Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino on Wednesday. "It was amazing... our neighbors, we sort of got everybody together and we said we were all going to go at once. So it was kind of a caravan. How much everyone texted and made sure everyone was safe when we got to the bottom."
"Everyone I know... has been evacuated, and I would say half of them have lost their homes," she continued. "I have a business in the village and… I think the entire block went up. We watched it burning last night. There are a lot of residents who own businesses, a lot of women who own businesses in town, and I don't know how many of them will survive."
Three wildfires are burning in Los Angeles County, including the Pacific Palisades and Sylmar neighborhoods of Los Angeles and another near the City of Pasadena. As of Wednesday morning, the fires were zero percent contained as strong winds hindered firefighters from deploying aircraft to battle the infernos.
Robertson said as Tuesday progressed, the pair tracked the fire and eventually received an evacuation order.
"Tricia and her son went down first and were turned around by the smoke and the flames on both sides of the canyon… and the cars blocking the road. They came back home. We heard that the order to evacuate was rescinded, so we weren't quite sure what to do, but then the winds just kept picking up and the smoke was all around us, so we decided to make a break for it."
More than 30,000 residents are under evacuation orders, and more than 200,000 people were without power in Los Angeles County by Tuesday evening.
Officials were forced to bulldoze cars to make room for firefighters to battle the flames, which Robertson compared to a "war zone."
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"Luckily, the police took down groups of cars with an escort after the other cars had been bulldozed, so we were able to drive through the congestion point, which looked like a war zone," Robertson said. "There must have been at least 50, 75 cars pushed to the side, which we've seen images of. There's burning debris on the ground and… fire hoses and blockages everywhere."
"All of our landmarks, our schools, our grocery store, our churches, everything on the way down to PCH was on fire around us, so it was really hard to see that, and then and then drive away," he continued.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Margaret Stewart told "Fox & Friends" Wednesday morning that the wildfires raging in her city are "dynamic and dangerous" and are "continuing to grow."
"We are in extreme wind conditions. We have winds sustained and gusting over 80 mph, which is hurricane force. It is not possible to stop a fire that is wind-driven like this, with this kind of topography, from the ground," she said.
"We need to be able to fly our aircraft. Our helicopters cannot fly under this wind condition. They are continually evaluating it. Unfortunately the winds are not forecasted to lessen over the next hours," she continued.
"This is a dynamic and dangerous fire that is continuing to grow. We do have many structures damaged and destroyed but we are not able to quantify that at this time," Stewart also said. "And we have had injuries to both firefighters and civilians."