Wildfire sparks panicked evacuations in Los Angeles suburbs

by Huw GRIFFITH

Firefighters on Wednesday battled a ferocious wildfire in Los Angeles suburbs, home to many Hollywood celebrities, which devoured buildings and sparked panicked evacuations as hurricane-force winds fueled rapid blaze growth.

Frightened residents abandoned their cars on one of the only roads in and out of the upscale Pacific Palisades area, fleeing on foot from the 3,000-acre (1,200-hectare) blaze engulfing an area packed with multimillion-dollar homes in the Santa Monica Mountains.