Pacific Palisades is a neighborhood in the Westside region of Los Angeles, California, situated about 20 miles (32 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles.
The Sayre Fire, also known as the Sylmar Fire, was a November 2008 wildfire which burned 489 residences in Los Angeles the "worst loss of homes due to fire" in the city's history at that time. The fire was first reported at 10:29 p.m. PDT on November 14, 2008, in the Sylmar section of Los Angeles. As of November 20, 2008, the fire was 100% contained, had burned 11,262 acres (46 km2) and destroyed more than 600 structures. The number of homes lost in the Sayre fire exceeded the prior record set in 1961 by the Bel Air Fire which claimed 484 homes, and it remained the most destructive in Los Angeles history until it too was surpassed by the Palisades Fire in 2025. There were no fatalities, just minor injuries to five firefighters and one civilian.
The 2009 California wildfires were a series of 9,159 wildfires that were active in the US state of California, during the year 2009. The fires burned more than 422,147 acres of land from early February through late November, due to Red Flag conditions, destroying hundreds of structures, injuring 134 people, and killing four. The wildfires also caused at least US$134.48 million in damage. Although the fires burned many different regions of California in August, the month was especially notable for several very large fires which burned in Southern California, despite being outside of the normal fire season for that region.
The Blue Cut Fire was a wildfire in the Cajon Pass, northeastern San Gabriel Mountains, and Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California. The fire, which began on the Blue Cut hiking trail in the San Bernardino National Forest, was first reported on August 16, 2016 at 10:36 a.m., just west of Interstate 15. A red flag warning was in effect in the area of the fire, with temperatures near 100 °F (38 °C) and winds gusting up to 30 miles per hour (48 km/h).
In terms of property damage, 2017 was the most destructive wildfire season on record in California at the time, surpassed by only the 2018 season and the 2020 season, with a total of 9,560 fires burning 1,548,429 acres (6,266.27 km2) of land, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, including five of the 20 most destructive wildland-urban interface fires in the state's history. Throughout 2017, the fires destroyed or damaged more than 10,000 structures in the state, a higher tally than the previous nine years combined. State data showed that the large wildfires killed 47 people – 45 civilians and 2 firefighters – almost higher than the previous 10 years combined. The total property damage and total amount of burned land were both surpassed by the 2018 California wildfires.
The Panorama Fire was a destructive and fatal wildfire in the U.S. state of California's San Bernardino County. The fire began on November 24, 1980, and was fully contained on December 1, 1980. The fire was set by an unknown arsonist about 10:50 a.m. near Panorama Point, a county equipment depot along California State Route 18 in the San Bernardino Mountains. The fire's growth was exacerbated by strong Santa Ana winds that reached 90 miles an hour, pushing the flames into populated areas in Waterman Canyon and the city of San Bernardino. 325 structures were destroyed, including 310 homes.
The 2019 California wildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned across the U.S. state of California as part of the 2019 wildfire season. By the end of the year, according to Cal Fire and the US Forest Service, 7,860 fires were recorded, totaling an estimated of 259,823 acres of burned land. These fires caused 22 injuries, 3 fatalities, and damaged or destroyed 732 structures. The 2019 California fire season was less active than that of the two previous years, which set records for acreage, destructiveness, and deaths.
The 49er Fire was a destructive wildfire in 1988 in Northern California's Nevada County and Yuba County. The fire ignited on September 11 when a man accidentally set brush on fire by burning toilet paper near Highway 49. Driven by severe drought conditions and strong, dry winds, firefighting crews were hard-pressed to stop the fire's advance until winds calmed and humidity levels recovered. The fire burned 33,700 acres throughout the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, impinging on the communities of Lake Wildwood, Rough and Ready, and Smartsville before officials declared it fully contained on September 16.
The Kinneloa Fire was a destructive wildfire in Los Angeles County, Southern California in October 1993. The fire destroyed 196 buildings in the communities of Altadena, Kinneloa Mesa, and Sierra Madre in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, becoming at the time the twelfth-most destructive wildfire in California's history and one of the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles County history. The fire caused a multitude of minor injuries, one direct fatality, and two indirect fatalities.
The 1999 Jones Fire was a destructive wildfire in the U.S. state of California's Shasta County. The fire ignited on October 16, and was contained on October 19, 1999. It burned 26,200 acres (10,600 ha), destroyed 954 structures, and resulted in one fatality, becoming the then-second most destructive wildfire ever recorded in California, behind only the Oakland firestorm of 1991. As of 2023 it remains one of the 20 most destructive wildfires in the history of the state. The cause of the fire was never determined.
The 2001 California wildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned throughout the U.S. state of California during 2001. According to California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection statistics, 9,317 fires burned a total of 377,340 acres.
The 2023 California wildfire season was a series of significant wildfires that burned in the U.S. state of California during the calendar year. According to statistics published by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, a total of 7,127 fires burned a total of 324,917 acres. This was below the state's five-year average of 1,722,059 acres (696,893 ha) burned during the same period. The 2023 fire season followed the 2022 season, during which the number of fires and the resulting burned acreage were both below average. Four fatalities were reported during the 2023 fire season.
The 2024 California wildfire season was a series of wildfires that burned throughout the U.S. state of California. By the end of the year, a total of 8,024 wildfires burned a cumulative 1,050,012 acres (424,925 ha). The total number of wildfires was slightly higher than the five-year average, while the total number of acres burned was lower. Wildfires destroyed a total of 1,716 structures and killed one person in the state in 2024. This season had the most burned acres since the 2021 wildfire season.
The Palisades Fire is a wildfire burning in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County in Southern California which has killed at least five people. As of January 10, 2025, at 2:33 p.m. PST, the fire had spread to 21,317 acres, destroying the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles and nearby Malibu. It is the first and largest of a series of wildfires being driven by an extremely powerful Santa Ana wind event. On January 8, Wildfire Alliance statistics indicated that the fire is the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history, surpassing the Sayre Fire in Sylmar in 2008 which destroyed 604 structures. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Starting on January 7, 2025, an ongoing series of catastrophic wildfires have affected the Los Angeles metropolitan area and surrounding regions. The fires have been exacerbated by very low humidity, dry conditions, and hurricane-force Santa Ana winds that in some places have exceeded 80–100 miles per hour (130–160 km/h). As of January 10, the wildfires have killed 11 people, forced nearly 180,000 more to evacuate and destroyed or damaged more than 13,400 structures. Most of the damage has been done by the two largest fires: the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire.
The 2025 wildfire season involves wildfires on multiple continents.
The Eaton Fire is an active wildfire burning in the Altadena area of Los Angeles County in Southern California. It began in the evening on January 7, 2025, in Eaton Canyon in the San Gabriel Mountains. As of January 8, 2025, at 10:36 a.m. PST (UTC–8), the fire had spread to approximately 13,690 acres (5,540 ha). It is one of several fires being driven by the extremely powerful Santa Ana winds, along with the Palisades Fire.
The Hurst Fire, also known as the Sylmar Fire, is an active wildfire burning in the Sylmar area of the city of Los Angeles in Southern California. It is one of several fires being driven by an extremely powerful Santa Ana wind event.
Chronology of the 2025 Palisades Fire in Los Angeles, California, and Los Angeles County. Times are PST. "~" denotes "approximately".
