A brush fire that began in the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday quickly exploded into one of the most destructive firestorms in the region’s history, destroying over 1,000 homes and killing at least two people as of Wednesday. Overstretched firefighters are also battling two other blazes, the Eaton and Hurst fires — all fueled by hurricane-force winds. Hundreds of thousands of residents have been forced to evacuate, and California’s governor has declared a state of emergency as neighboring Hollywood moves to a standstill. Below are scenes of the devastation, growing hour by hour, and live updates.

According to Cal Fire’s current numbers, the Palisades fire has burned 15,832 acres as of Wednesday afternoon around 1:23 p.m. PST. Similarly, the Eaton fire has claimed 10,600 acres while the Hurst fire has destroyed 505 acres. Neither of the three fires have been contained.

President Biden revealed during a briefing with California officials that his son Hunter has been impacted by the raging wildfires.

“My son lives out here with his wife — they got a notification yesterday that their home was probably burned to the ground,” Biden said, per CBS News. “Today, it appears that maybe it’s still standing. They’re not sure.”

The Associated Press reports that the Pacific Palisades fire, that sparked the subsequent blazes across the region, is the most destructive in Los Angeles city history.

There was so much demand on the hydrant system at the heart of the fire that firefighters on Tuesday night were running out of water coming from hydrants in the Palisades, according to the Los Angeles Times. “Four times the normal demand was seen for 15 hours straight, which lowered our water pressure,” Los Angeles Department of Water and Power chief executive Janisse Quiñones told the paper. The hydrants in the area rely on three tanks with roughly 1 million gallons each. All three had run out by 3 a.m. Wednesday. Quiñones added that additional tanks have been rushed to the area to get the hydrant system operating.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Governor Newsom has canceled his scheduled trip to Washington, D.C., to attend the funeral of former president Jimmy Carter at the National Cathedral due to the ongoing fires in California. He previously was slated to appear alongside President Biden during his visit to the state on Tuesday, but ultimately called it off as the fires began that day.

CNN reports that Los Angeles mayor........

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