Anthony Hopkins, Paris Hilton, Adam Brody And 9000 Others Lost Homes In LA Wildfires

Some top Hollywood stars are among thousands of people who have lost their homes in the Los Angeles wildfires. Celebrities including Anthony Hopkins, Paris Hilton, Billy Crystal, and Adam Brody have lost their homes in the devastating wildfires currently sweeping through the Los Angeles area, reports said.

According to a report by the LA Times, officials on January 9 said that more than 9,000 homes, businesses and other buildings appeared to have been damaged or destroyed in the Palisades and Eaton fires. Around 5,300 of these structures were destroyed in the Palisades fire, while another 4,000 to 5,000 structures were estimated to be damaged or destroyed in the Eaton fire burning in the Altadena area, the LA Times report showed.

Actor James Woods, known for his roles in films like Nixon and Casino, became emotional during an interview with CNN as he spoke about losing his property in Pacific Palisades. "One day you're swimming in the pool and the next day it's all gone," he said.

Damages Worth $58 Billion

AccuWeather has estimated preliminary damages and economic losses to be between $52 billion (4.26 trillion INR) and $57 billion (4.67 trillion INR).

California is witnessing one of the most destructive wildfires in its history and the news reports and scientists believe that the sequence of weather, strong winds and climate change are the major reasons behind this level of destruction.

The wreckage surpassed that of the Sayre Fire of November 2008, which destroyed 604 structures in Sylmar, the northernmost suburb of the city, according to statistics kept by the Wildfire Alliance, a partnership between the city's fire department and MySafe:LA.

The fire destroyed the public library, two major grocery stores, a pair of banks and several boutiques in Palisades Village.

Residents rushing to escape created a traffic jam, blocking emergency vehicles from getting through. Crews used a bulldozer to push the abandoned cars off to the side. Photos depict what some residents describe as an apocalyptic scene.

Farther inland, the Eaton Fire north of Pasadena burned between 200 and 500 structures, substantially damaged five school campuses in Altadena and scorched more than 16.5 square miles (43 square kilometers). Employees at a senior center pushed dozens of residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds to a parking lot to escape.

The Hurst Fire, which started about 10:30 pm on January 7, prompted evacuations in Sylmar in the San Fernando Valley and grew to one square mile (2.6 square kilometers). Late January 8, another blaze broke out in the Hollywood Hills.

At least 100,000 people were ordered to evacuate - a number that kept changing because evacuation orders were continually being issued.