Pacific Palisades evacuees describe harrowing escape from wildfire: 'No one could move'

Katya Meyer has lived in Pacific Palisades almost her entire life. Tuesday was one of the most surreal, and at times terrifying, days she's had there.

Tuesday's fast-moving wildfire, fueled by dangerously strong Santa Ana winds in the westside area of Los Angeles, threatened homes and prompted mass evacuation orders for roughly 30,000 residents. Many evacuees sought shelter in neighboring Southern California cities like Santa Monica and Marina del Rey.

Meyer, her husband, her mother, and their dachshund were trapped in gridlock for four hours as they tried to drive the seven miles to stay with friends in Westwood in Los Angeles.

"The problem was traffic. No one could move," she admitted. "There was a moment when we were trapped on Sunset Boulevard and I was thinking, 'If the flames come down here, we're trapped in our car."

The drive was even more harrowing because her mother, who has Alzheimer's disease, kept wanting to open the car window. With the air full of smoke and ashes, Meyer said they didn't use the car AC because she didn't want to run out of gas.

Despite the moments of fear, Meyer said the people on the road were kind.

"Palisades is a village. People were very patient, everyone was nice," Meyer explained. "It was a feeling that we were all in this together."

Meyer's family is now staying with friends but the reports they're getting are that their house in Pacific Palisades is safe for now. "There are flames on our bluff," she said. "Friends are texting us pictures of places we love burn down."

'This is a whole other animal'

Luca Bove was working Tuesday night at the Farms Market and Deli in Santa Monica, California, one town over from the fire in Pacific Palisades where the blaze was visible up in the hills to the west. Bove said signs of the wildfire were everywhere.

"At first it was just smoke. Then there was a glow," Bove said. "Now we can see flames in the hills."

While businesses near Bove remained open, there was no ignoring the fire.

"There's definitely ash in the air and it's all over the cars," he said, adding that traffic in the area was heavy. "Everyone's stopping to look up at the hills and wondering what's going to happen. I'm not going to lie, it's kind of scary."

Meanwhile at nearby Chelsea Restaurant, general manager Wally Moran was in the midst of a dinner rush, despite most of the evening's reservations having been canceled. The tables quickly filled with somewhat shell-shocked evacuees from Pacific Palisades.

"They just want to eat and be quiet," he said.

From his building's roof, an orange glow was visible on the horizon and the smell of smoke was strong, depending on which way the wind was blowing.

"This is bad," said Moran, who has lived in Los Angeles for over 20 years. "Yes, we have the Santa Ana winds but this is a whole other animal. It's been really, really strong winds all day."

He said all the businesses in Santa Monica have been pulling together to help evacuees. "I've called about eight hotels trying to find rooms for our guests tonight. They're all sold out, we're sending people to Beverly Hills and Marina Del Rey."

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'Ready to do whatever we need to do'

Elena Roché of Topanga Canyon said she and her husband, Warren Roché, and two adult daughters can see the fire about four miles south of their nearly 40-year-old bed and breakfast.

"We can see a lot of structural damage along the Pacific Coast Highway," Roche said through a crackling phone landline. "The winds are so strong, they’re like hurricane gusts and can nearly knock you off your feet near the ridge tops. I think that’s what is driving this fire. It looks nearly impossible to control."

Elena Roché, whose business is located on the eastern side of the canyon, said her family hadn't been told to leave the area but that they're "ready to go, if necessary."

She said her neighbors on the southern and western sides of the canyon were given orders to evacuate. Meanwhile, she is keeping others abreast of the blaze by hiking up a trail and sending videos via text and YouTube. She affirmed that her family does have an escape plan if they need to flee.

"We’re ready to do whatever we need to do," Roche said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pacific Palisades evacuees describe harrowing escape from blaze