"Devil's Wind" hit LA...30,000 people evacuated from major wildfires

[Anchor]
The U.S., which has been suffering from unprecedented heavy snow and cold waves since the beginning of the new year, has seen a large forest fire this time.

More than 30,000 residents evacuated as bushfires start in rich town on West L.A. coast
Wildfires continue to spread in local gusts called the Devil's Wind
.

Reporter Yoon Hyun-sook reports.

[Reporter]
A raging fire engulfs the house.

Firefighters keep spraying water, but it's not enough to put out the flames.

The fire started in the Pacific Palisades area on the coast of LA around 10:30 a.m. local time on the 7th.

There are large mansions along the waterfront, so Hollywood actors and rich people are neighboring rich villages, but they are helpless in the face of the sudden start of the forest fire.

[James Woods (Account X) / Actor in the movie Once Upon a Time in America: I'm standing in the driveway watching to evacuate. A lot of planes keep spraying water....]

More than 30,000 residents were ordered to evacuate as the fire spread rapidly due to strong winds in dry weather.

As the roads were blocked by evacuation vehicles, some residents abandoned their cars and rushed out.

[Peter / Pacific Palisades resident] I saw burning debris fall on a nearby road. Whatever you lose, I thought I had to get out of here quickly.]

Overnight, the flames intensified, threatening the Getty Villa, LA's leading art museum.

Seasonal gusts of up to 160km/h continue, making it the worst condition for forest fire suppression.This strong wind, called

Santa Ana', is also called the Devil's Wind locally because it is difficult to predict even the direction.

[Gavin Newsom / California Governor: Strong winds are expected to cause other fires at the same time. We've had similar experiences before, so we're continuing to put in people.

In the meantime, the Arctic cold wave, which has plagued the United States in the new year, continues to rage.

Amid the heaviest snow in a decade in the central part of the country, an unusual winter storm is also feared to hit Dallas, South Texas, which is expected to disrupt oil and gas production.

I'm YTN's Yoon Hyunsuk.



Video editing: Han Kyung-hee