More than 5,300 structures believed to be destroyed in deadly Palisades Fire

The nearly 20,000-acre wildfire that has leveled much of Pacific Palisades turned deadly Thursday with the discovery of human remains in the ruins of a home along Pacific Coast Highway, while fire officials estimated that more than 5,300 structures have been destroyed by the blaze.

Sheriff's deputies and representatives of the county Medical Examiner's Office removed the remains Thursday from the rubble of the home in the vicinity of Duke's restaurant in Malibu. Officials from the sheriff's department told reporters at the scene that deputies received a missing person report, prompting them to conduct a welfare check at the burned-out home, where the remains were discovered.

No other details were immediately available. Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart issued a statement saying the "tragic news weighs heavily on our hearts."

"This is a painful reminder of the profound impact this fire is having on our community," Stewart said. "Malibu is more than a city -- we are neighbors, friends, and family. Even when we don't know someone's name, their loss is felt by all of us. In times like this, we must come together, support one another, and show the resilience that defines our community."

Speaking to reporters Thursday morning, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna declined to give any specific updates on deaths that have occurred in the various fires burning in the region. He previously announced five deaths tied to the Eaton Fire burning near Altadena and Pasadena, but said he wanted to verify details about other possible fatalities before releasing additional information.

The Palisades Fire was reported around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in the area of Piedra Morada and Monte Hermoso drives, according to L.A. Fire Department spokesman David Ortiz. It continued to grow exponentially Tuesday and Wednesday thanks to heavy fuel loads and powerful Santa Ana winds.

By 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, the fire was mapped at 17,234 acres, with 0% containment, according to Cal Fire. On Thursday afternoon, however, Cal Fire released a statement saying a new aerial assessment put the size of the fire at 19,978 acres, still with 0% containment.

The aerial survey also determined that about 5,316 structures may have been destroyed by the fire. Those "structures" could include residential and commercial properties and smaller structures such as RVs, sheds or other "minor buildings."

"It is safe to say the Palisades Fire is one of the most destructive natural disasters in the history of Los Angeles," LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley said during a Thursday morning briefing.

Video from the fire zone painted pictures of total devastation, with flames jumping from home to home, structure to structure throughout the Palisades area.

The cause of the fire was unknown. It erupted amid fierce Santa Ana winds that forecasters called the worst windstorm in the Southland in a decade. The peak gusts of the wind event slammed the fire area between 10 p.m. Tuesday and early Wednesday morning, though red flag warnings of critical fire danger were expected to be in place until Friday evening.

Air tankers and water-dropping helicopters made drops throughout daylight hours Tuesday as firefighters from across the region rushed to the scene, but they were all grounded at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday due to escalating winds. Some aircraft returned to the firefight on Wednesday.

Mandatory evacuation orders were issued across a wide area generally stretching from Kenter Avenue on the east, Mulholland Drive on the north, Topanga Canyon Boulevard on the west and the Pacific Ocean on the south.

L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said there were a "high number of significant injuries to residents who did not evacuate, in addition to first responders who were on the fire lines."

With the fire expanding to the east, the city of Santa Monica issued a mandatory evacuation order for all residents north of Montana Avenue from the ocean to 11th Street, and north of San Vicente Boulevard between Ocean Boulevard and 26th Street. An evacuation warning was issued for all other residents north of Montana.

The city of Malibu also issued evacuation orders as the flames advanced into that city. Evacuations were ordered:

-- north of PCH, south of Rambla Pacifio Street, east of Carbon Beach Terrace and west of Las Flores Mesa Drive;

-- north of PCH, south of Budwood Matway, east of Las Flores Mesa Drive and west of Old Malibu Road; and

-- north of Rambla Pacifico Street, south of Pauma Road, Las Flores Canyon Road and Rambla Pacifico, east of Carbon Canyon Road and west of Gorge Road.

Other areas in Malibu were placed under evacuation warnings.

Evacuation centers were established at the Westwood Recreation Center, 1350 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Pasadena Convention Center at 300 E. Green St. in Pasadena, and at El Camino Real Charter High School in Woodland Hills.

Large animals can be taken to Pierce College at 6201 Winnetka Ave., or the L.A. Equestrian Center at 480 Riverside Drive in Burbank. Small animals can be taken to the Agoura Animal Care Center at 29525 Agoura Road in Agoura Hills and Pasadena Humane Society at 361 S. Raymond Ave in Pasadena.

Evacuees were initially instructed to travel south on Palisades Drive to westbound Sunset Boulevard then to southbound PCH. However, the evacuation routes quickly filled with vehicles Tuesday afternoon, prompting some people to simply pull over near Palisades and Sunset, exit their cars and walk out of the area on foot.

LAFD officials said about 30 vehicles were abandoned at the location, and a bulldozer was used to push some of the vehicles out of the intersection to prevent them from blocking traffic in and out of the area.

Pacific Coast Highway remains closed north of the McClure Tunnel and through the fire area. The westbound Santa Monica (10) Freeway remains closed at Lincoln Boulevard.

L.A. County Board of Supervisors Chair Kathryn Barger signed an emergency proclamation in response to the fire, and the city of L.A. also issued an emergency declaration. Gov. Gavin Newsom later signed a state of emergency proclamation.

Newsom, noting that President Joe Biden was in the L.A. area when the fire erupted, said Biden had given immediate approval to federal funding to help cover the firefighting effort.

On Tuesday night, LAFD Capt. Erik Scott said a 25-year-old female firefighter suffered a serious head injury while fighting the blaze and was taken to a hospital. The circumstances of the injury were unknown. Several other people were treated for burn injuries in the area of Duke's restaurant along Pacific Coast Highway, Scott said. It was also unclear how those injuries occurred, or how many people were affected.

By early evening, the flames had jumped to the south side of PCH, reaching the coastline. The fire also continued spreading both east and west, jumping part of Tuna Canyon Road as it pushed into Malibu.

Video from the scene showed what appeared to be structures burning on the campus of Palisades Charter High School, which was closed this week. Theatre Palisades on Temescal Canyon Road -- near the high school -- was completely engulfed in flames. At least two elementary schools were also believed to have burned.

Iconic eateries in the area such as the Reel Inn and Cholada Thai were also destroyed.

The Getty Villa museum in Pacific Palisades was not damaged, and it will remain closed until at least Monday. Katherine Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, issued a statement Tuesday evening saying that the staff and art collection at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades "remain safe," although "some trees and vegetation on site have burned."

The Villa, which houses a treasured collection of Greek and Roman antiquities, is normally closed to the public on Tuesdays.

"Fortunately, Getty had made extensive efforts to clear brush from the surrounding area as part of its fire mitigation efforts throughout the year," Fleming said. "Some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but 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."

Getty officials also said their Brentwood museum near the San Diego (405) Freeway would be closed until at least Sunday "out of caution and to help alleviate traffic in the area."

SoCalGas shut off natural gas service to the Malibu community from Brentwood Country Club to Pepperdine University. As a result, about 15,000 customers in the impacted communities were experiencing temporary service outages, according to SoCalGas' Chris Gilbride.