Motherwell-born presenter Ross King told STV News of the ‘scenes of devastation’ as the fires continue to rip through the area.
At 8.30 PST on Thursday, January 9, the 62-year-old said: “Everyone’s still absolutely terrified, the most destructive fire in LA’s history; I’m very lucky that I’m back in the house; it looked like we were going to have to evacuate at one point.”
He added: “You go outside, the smell of smoke is absolutely everywhere; there’s an eerie silence in many places.
“We’re way over 150,000 people evacuated, four million people without electricity; it is most unbelievable.”
Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes as a new blaze sweeps through the famed Hollywood Hills, adding to five others already ripping through the American state.
Fanned by extremely strong winds, the fires have swept through Los Angeles since Tuesday, January 7.
They started in the city’s Pacific Palisades area before other infernos started popping up in other areas.
The fire began shortly after the start of a Santa Ana windstorm that the National Weather Service warned could be ‘life-threatening’ and the ‘strongest to hit Southern California’ in more than a decade.
“The risk is very much here.
“The Santa Ana winds are just so unpredictable at the moment, they’re swirling around, it just takes one tiny ember, which can travel many miles, just to set off another fire,” he said.
“Everyone’s still very much on edge.”
Sadly, King revealed that five of his pals have “completely lost everything” to the blaze: “Thankfully, they haven’t lost their lives, and that, of course, is the most important thing.”
The Scots television presenter, actor, and writer, is best known for being the LA Correspondent for ITV Breakfast programmes Lorraine and Good Morning Britain.
The two biggest wildfires ravaging the area have killed at least 10 people and burned more than 10,000 homes and other structures, officials have said.
The Kenneth Fire started late on Thursday afternoon in the San Fernando Valley, just two miles from a school serving as a shelter for evacuees from another fire.
It moved into neighbouring Ventura County but a large and aggressive response by firefighters stopped the flames from spreading.
About 400 firefighters remained on the scene overnight to guard against the fire flaring up.
Only hours before the Kenneth Fire roared to life officials expressed encouragement after firefighters aided by calmer winds and help from crews from outside the state saw the first signs of successfully beating back the region’s two devastating wildfires.
The Eaton Fire near Pasadena that started on Tuesday night has burned more than 5,000 structures, a term that includes homes, apartment buildings, businesses, outbuildings and vehicles.
Firefighters were able to establish the first bit of containment on Thursday.
To the west in Pacific Palisades, the largest of the fires burning in the LA area has destroyed more than 5,300 structures and firefighters had no containment.
All of the major fires that have broken out this week are located in a roughly 25-mile band north of central Los Angeles, spreading a sense of fear and sadness across the nation’s second-largest city.
No cause has been identified for the largest fires, however, firefighters made significant gains on Thursday at slowing the spread of the major fires, but containment remained far out of reach.
Crews also knocked down a blaze in the Hollywood Hills with the help of water drops from aircraft, allowing an evacuation to be lifted on Thursday.
The fire that sparked late on Wednesday near the heart of the entertainment industry came perilously close to igniting the famed Hollywood Bowl outdoor concert venue.
Of the 10 deaths so far, Los Angeles fire chief Kristin Crowley confirmed two were in the Palisades Fire.
County officials said the Eaton Fire had killed five.
Cadaver dogs and crews are searching through rubble to see if there are more victims.
At least 180,000 people were under evacuation orders, and the fires have consumed about 45 square miles – roughly the size of San Francisco.
The Palisades Fire is already the most destructive in Los Angeles’ history.
Meanwhile, many celebrities live in areas devastated by fire.
Among those who lost their homes were Billy Crystal, Mandy Moore and Paris Hilton.
