An apocalyptic, fast-moving inferno that sparked mass evacuations in Calabasas and Hidden Hills is being investigated as arson, with one suspect arrested – as the death toll from the city’s fires reaches double figures.
The Kenneth Fire is tearing through the West Hills at a rapid rate, with 900 exhausted first responders pulled from other high priority infernos in southern California to protect homes and try to contain the fiery flames.
It is just one of three intense fires – Palisades, Kenneth, and Eaton – burning out-of-control across the City of Angels.
The death toll has reached 10 and at least 10,000 structures have been wiped out, with celebrities including Paris Hilton, Denise Crosby, and Milo Ventimiglia now amongst the A-listers who have seen their homes reduced to ash.
LAPD senior lead officer Charles Dinsel told NewsNation that a suspect is in custody, who is believed to have intentionally caused the unruly Kenneth Fire.
‘About 20 to 30 minutes later a suspect was detained over in Woodland Hills area by citizens. It is being investigated as a crime,’ Dinsel said.
The officer was asked directly if he believed the fire was set intentionally, and he said: ‘At this time, that’s what we believe. Yes.’
Sources told DailyMail.com that a resident called 911 to report a male attempting to set a fire at the 21700 block of Ybarra road at around 4.30pm.
The Kenneth fire is tearing through the West Hills at a rapid rate, with 900 exhausted first responders pulled from other high priority infernos in southern California to protect homes and try to contain the flames
An apocalyptic, fast moving fire that sparked mass evacuations in Calabasas and the Hidden Hills is being investigated as an arson incident, with one suspect arrested
The once lavish Pacific Palisades has been blanketed in a thick coating of ash and soot
Locals are now returning home to learn they have lost everything
The death toll has reached 10 and at least 10,000 structures have been wiped out
The Altadena Community Church (pictured) was completely destroyed in the Eaton fire
The suspect was arrested and taken to Topanga station. LAPD Drake Madison cautioned: ‘We cannot confirm any connection to any fire at this time.’
Dinsel said there was no clear motive, adding that the area around Victory Trailhead is now being ‘closed off’ for further investigations and is being treated as a crime scene.
The suspect is a homeless man in his 30s, according to the NY Post.
The alleged arsonist’s arrest has confirmed Hollywood A-listers’ worst fears that their homes are being targeted.
Happy Days star Henry Winkler, 79, wrote on social media: ‘THERE IS an ARSONIST here in LA . May you be beaten you unrecognizable !!! The pain you have caused !!!’
Actress Alison Sweeney responded: ‘Agreed.’
Singer Chris Brown also had his suspicions, writing: ‘Someone starting these fires. S**t don’t add up.’
Residents are only now beginning to return to their neighborhoods, often to learn they’ve lost everything
The Malibu coastline was decimated by the Palisades wildfire
The charred remains of homes are all that is left in huge swathes of Pacific Palisades and beyond
The LA Fire Department has responded after Henry Winkler made a shock claim about the cause of the California blazes
TV personality Elizabeth Chambers also chimed in, telling her fans ‘feels like this is a lot more than nature.’
After confirmation that a suspected arsonist had been arrested, Winkler updated his initial post, adding: ‘One in custody so far.’
An LA Fire Department official initially dismissed the claim, saying ‘there’s no way to know at this moment exactly where and how the series of fires started, but an investigation is underway.’
Heroic first responders were alerted to the latest fire in the upper Los Angeles-Ventura County border spreading rapidly through the West Hills and encroaching upon homes in nearby Calabasas and Hidden Hills.
Officials issued a chilling warning on urging residents not to ignore the evacuation orders, with Senator Adam Schiff bluntly stating: ‘If you stay, you’re going to die.’
‘If you get an evacuation order, get the hell out,’ he said. ‘You may think you can outrun a fire, you cannot outrun these fires. If you stay, you’re going to die in them.’
The fast moving Kenneth blaze is already encompassing 1,000 acres and threatening the Malibu Canyon area north of the 101 Freeway near Calabasas, home to Kourtney Kardashian and Will Smith. Kim and Khloe Kardashian live in nearby Hidden Hills.
Sources told DailyMail.com that a resident called 911 to report a male attempting to set a fire at the 21700 block of Ybarra road at around 4.30pm
Heroic first responders were alerted to the latest fire in the upper Los Angeles-Ventura County border spreading rapidly through the West Hills and encroaching upon homes in nearby Calabasas and Hidden Hills
Mandatory evacuation orders were announced as firefighters drop water bombs from the skies in an effort to contain the blaze, which is being spurred on by strong Santa Ana winds.
The road out of Calabasas quickly became gridlocked with bumper to bumper traffic as locals heed warnings and abandon their homes.
Residents across southern California have been warned for days to have bags full of important documents and possessions packed and ready to grab in an emergency.
The fire was reported as 50 acres at 3:45 pm but had exploded to 791 acres by 4.45pm. By 6pm, it encompassed 960 acres – and by 11pm, it had reached 1,000 acres.
Meanwhile, Sheriff Robert Luna of Los Angeles County called for ‘patience’ with official death counts.
‘Right now, frankly, we don’t know yet,’ he said. ‘I think the death toll will rise. I hope I’m wrong.’
Across Los Angeles some 180,000 people have been given mandatory evacuation orders, while another 200,000 have been put on alert and warned to consider fleeing their homes.
Officials issued a chilling warning on Thursday night urging residents not to ignore the evacuation orders, with Senator Adam Schiff bluntly stating: ‘If you stay, you’re going to die’
A helicopter drops water on the Kenneth wildfire in the Woodland Hills
This comes after officials with Los Angeles County said that an evacuation order alert for residents near the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills was mistakenly sent countywide on Thursday afternoon.
The alert was only intended for residents of Calabasas and Agoura Hills – but it nonetheless shocked some 9million people living in the county, who were pinged with the urgent message.
The damage from the two largest fires – the Pacific Palisades blaze and Eaton inferno – has been immense as Los Angeles enters its fourth day on fire.
David Acuna, a spokesman for Cal Fire, provided a chilling new warning for Californians as they look ahead to the future and consider rebuilding their lives.
‘There really is no fire season, it’s a fire year,’ he said. ‘I’ve been doing this for 20 years, and I’ve never seen it this bad.’
Similarly, Pasadena fire chief Chad Augustin said: ‘The level of devastation is staggering.’
As of Friday morning, just six percent of the Palisades Fire had been contained, but zero percent of both the Eaton and Kenneth fires had been controlled.
Eaton now covers 13,690 acres, while the larger Palisades fire stretches beyond 19,978 acres.
Across Los Angeles some 180,000 people have been given mandatory evacuation orders, while another 200,000 have been put on alert and warned to consider fleeing their homes
Kim Kardashian’s $60million home is within the Hidden Hills
The latest suburbs under threat, Calabasas and Hidden Hills, are home to the Kardashians
The high fire weather risk will continue through Friday, National Weather Service Los Angeles meteorologists said Thursday afternoon in a social media post.
Santa Ana winds were moderate to strong Thursday night, keeping the fire weather threat in the area focused on Los Angeles and Ventura County into Friday morning.
‘The threat doesn’t end after Friday however,’ the post said. Offshore winds will continue into early next week, peaking Sunday as well as Tuesday into Wednesday.
The systemic failures in the deep blue city have led many to wonder how things could’ve gotten this out of hand – and led many to call for the resignation of Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom.
Bass is under pressure to resign amid the ongoing wildfire crisis, with revelations heroic firefighters had trouble accessing enough water to fight infernos and hydrants were empty.
Locals have been ordered to evacuate as fires continue to spread across southern California
Officials with Los Angeles County say an evacuation order alert for residents near the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills was mistakenly sent countywide on Thursday afternoon. The alert was only intended for residents of Calabasas and Agoura Hills
She slashed the LA Fire Department’s budget by $17.6million in 2024 after being talked down from $23million in cuts, and officials ignored warnings about the threat of fire.
President Joe Biden later stated the problems were self-inflicted to avoid further fanning the flames.
‘What I know from talking to the governor, there are concerns out there that there’s also been a water shortage,’ he said in a press briefing Thursday.
‘The fact is the utilities, understandably, shut off power because they are worried the lines that carried energy were going to be blown down and spark additional fires.
‘When it did that, it cut off the ability to generate pumping the water, that’s what caused the lack of water in these hydrants.’