• The largest Los Angeles fire spread to new neighbourhoods, prompting evacuations and raising concerns about control.
• At least 11 people have died, with thousands of homes destroyed, likened by Joe Biden to a ‘war scene’.
• Governor Gavin Newsom ordered an independent review, citing issues such as water supply shortages during the fires.

The largest of the Los Angeles fires spread towards previously untouched neighbourhoods, forcing new evacuations, and dimming hopes that the disaster was coming under control.

Across the city, at least 11 people have died as multiple fireshave ripped through residential areas since mid-week, razing thousands of homes in destruction that United States President Joe Biden likened to a “war scene”.

Despite huge firefighting efforts, the Palisades fire’s expansion prompted evacuation orders in ritzy neighbourhoods along its eastern flank, home to the famous Getty Centre art museum.

Winds were forecast to pick up again today after a brief lull, posing the risk of new fires as embers are blown into dry brush.

Officers investigate a vehicle while enforcing a new evacuation order as smoke and flames from the Palisades fire burn towards the Encino and Tarzana neighbourhoods, in Los Angeles. Photo / AFP

Los Angeles residents have increasingly demanded to know who is at fault for the disaster as they grapple with the ruin and local anger rises over officials' preparedness and response.

Nicole Perri, whose home in the upmarket Pacific Palisades burned down, told AFP that officials “completely let us down”.

Story continues after live blog

KEY POINTS:

• At least 11 people have died, including an Australian citizen, as of Sunday 10am NZ time.
• Five separate fires have so far burned more than 15,000ha, destroying more than 12,000 buildings.
• The biggest fire, the Palisades fire, is 11% contained and covers more than 9100ha.
• Winds have picked up again after a brief lull, posing the risk of new fires.

10:35 am

'She didn't get out': Actress Jennifer Garner loses friend in LA wildfires

Jennifer Garnerlost a friend in the Los Angeles wildfires.

While the 52-year-old actress confirmed a close friends of hers had died, she admitted she was not quite ready to talk about it as the loss was too raw.

Speaking on MSNBC, she said: “I did lose a friend, and for our church, it’sreally tender so I don’t feel like we should talk about it yet. I did lose a friend. She didn’t get out in time.

”My heart bleeds for my friends. I mean, I can think of 100 families, and there are 5000 homes lost.

“I can, without even [thinking], I could just write out a list of 100 friends who lost their homes.“

Garner’s house survived the fires, and her former husband Ben Affleck sought shelter at her house after being evacuated from his own.

10:10 am

The latest figures

At least 11 people are known to have died in the chaotic infernos, with 13 reported missing, but the toll is widely expected to rise.

The Palisades fire is now 11% contained and spreading east after burning 9,100ha. The Eaton Fire is at 5600ha and 15% contained.

Five separate fires have destroyed around 12,000 structures, California's fire agency reported. But Todd Hopkins, who is overseeing the Palisades Fire fight, said not all of those buildings were homes.

"Structures can be homes, outbuildings, RVs, automobiles or other types of things like sheds," he said, adding the confirmed total of homes destroyed in the biggest fire was 426.

- AFP

09:19 am

LA mayor denies sacking fire chief

Los Angeles city and fire officials have put on a united front following reports of a furious row over the handling of devastating wildfires raging throughout the city.

In an at-times tense press conference, Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass denied a report that she had been planning to fire Los Angeles City Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley.

Crowley, standing alongside Bass, meanwhile said the city's political leaders, fire and police departments were "all on the same page" as they battled the devastating infernos that have left at least 11 people dead.

Crowley had appeared to direct a barb at city leaders earlier this week when she said her department was underfunded.

"My message is the fire department needs to be properly funded," Crowley told Fox television's local network. "It's not."

Hours later, Crowley met Bass in a private meeting at city hall which ran so late that Bass was forced to miss a scheduled news briefing. The Daily Mail later reported on its website that Bass had fired Crowley.

Yet Bass and Crowley denied the reported rift as they stood alongside Los Angeles Police Department chief Jim McDonnell.

"As you see here, the chief and I are lockstep in our number one mission, and that mission is to get us past this emergency," Bass told reporters.

"We want to make sure that we save lives, we save housing, we save businesses, and if there are differences that we have, we will continue to deal with those in private."

Asked if she had been planning to fire Crowley, Bass replied emphatically: "No."

- AFP

08:30 am

A helicopter drops water on the Palisades Fire near the Sullivan Canyon area of Los Angeles on Saturday, local time. The devastating Palisades Fire pushed to the northeast, has prompted new evacuations in the Southern California neighbourhoods of Brentwood and Encino. Photo /  Getty Images

07:58 am

Australian man Rory Sykes, 32, killed at Malibu home

An Australian man living in Los Angeles has died as a fire tore through Malibu.

Rory Callum Sykes, 32, was confirmed to have died in a statement by his mother Shelly Sykes on Twitter.

"I’m totally heart broken", she writes.

07:52 am

Getty art center faces LA flames

Wildfires are looming toward the celebrated Getty Center and its priceless collection.

Nestled in the mountains above Los Angeles, the famed art museum is within a new evacuation warning zone as the Palisades Fire roars east toward populated areas.

Dubbed a "beautiful fortress" and constructed of fire-resistant travertine stone, as well as cement and steel, the center has drawn museum experts from around the world to observe its safety system.

Its roofs are covered with crushed stone to prevent embers igniting, and even in the gardens, resilient plants were chosen.

Inside, the galleries can be closed off with a vault-like double door that, museum officials say, is practically impenetrable.

"Getty staff, the art collections and buildings remain safe from the Palisades Fire," the museum said hours before the evacuation warning.

"The threat is still happening," Getty added in an X post.

The museum's unique collection comprises 125,000 artworks -- including paintings by Rembrandt, Turner, Van Gogh and Monet -- and 1.4 million documents. It also houses a research hub and a foundation.

- AFP

07:39 am

LA fire chief says city failed her department

Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley has blasted the City of Los Angeles for failing its more than 100,000 displaced residents who were forced to evacuate from the ongoing wildfire siege. 

When asked by Fox News' affiliate, KTTV, if the City of Los Angeles, and its Mayor Karen Bass failed the city, Crowley replied: "Yes." 

Crowley said that pressing staffing shortages impacted the department's response time when the blaze began tearing across Los Angeles. 

"Any budget cut is going to impact our ability to provide service," she told KTTV. "That is a ground truth in regard to our ability. If there's a budget cut, we had to pull from somewhere else. What does that mean? That doesn't get done or that there are delays." 

07:20 am

Pope Francis: 'Saddened by the loss of life'

Pope Francis yesterday expressed his sadness over the havoc caused by the giant California wildfires and expressed his spiritual closeness with the victims in a telegram to the archbishop of Los Angeles.

"Saddened by the loss of life and the widespread destruction," the pontiff expressed his "spiritual closeness" with the victims, Vatican number two Pietro Parolin wrote in the telegram.

- AFP

07:08 am

Australian citizen confirmed dead in the LA wildfires

Story continues

“I don’t think the officials were prepared at all,” said James Brown, a 65-year-old retired lawyer across the city in Altadena.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has ordered a “full independent review”, describing the lack of water supplies during the initial fires as “deeply troubling”.

“We need answers to how that happened,” he wrote in an open letter.

Burned-out beachfront homes destroyed by the Palisades fire are seen along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. Photo / AFP

As reports of looting grew, a sunset-to-sunrise curfew was imposed in evacuated areas.

About two dozen arrests have already been made across Los Angeles, where some residents have organised street patrols and kept armed watch over their own houses.

Burned-out cars and homes reduced to rubble by the Eaton fire. Photo / AFP

The National Guard has been deployed to bolster law enforcement.

Five separate fires have so far burned more than 15,000ha, destroying around 12,000 buildings, California’s fire agency reported.

A helicopter drops water on smoke and flames from the Palisades fire burning behind Mulholland Drive towards the Encino neighbourhood in Los Angeles, California. Photo / AFP

The Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office confirmed an additional fatality, bringing the overall death toll so far to 11, although the figure is expected to rise.

“It reminded me of more of a war scene, where you had certain targets that were bombarded,” said Biden, as he received a briefing at the White House.

Winds had calmed yesterday, providing a fleeting window of opportunity for firefighters battling blazes around the clock for a fourth consecutive day.

Cars belonging to the Altadena Auto Centre dealership destroyed by the Eaton fire remain parked in a lot in Altadena in Los Angeles. Photo / AFP

Braveheart actor Mel Gibson was the latest celebrity to reveal his Malibu home had burned down, telling NewsNation the loss was “devastating”.

Paris Hilton, Anthony Hopkins, and Billy Crystal were among a long list of celebrities who lost houses, while Prince Harry and his wife Meghan – who quit royal life in 2020 and moved to California – were seen comforting survivors.

Paris Hilton has shown fans the damage to her trailer caused by a fire that broke out on her music video set. Photos / Instagram @parishilton

The Palisades fire was only 8% contained and spreading east after burning 8740ha.

Emergency chiefs warned the situation was still extremely dangerous.

The winds “are going to increase again in the coming days”, said Deanne Criswell, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema).

Authorities have said it was too early to know the cause of the blazes.

Biden took a veiled swipe at President-elect Donald Trump, who has spread misinformation over the fires that has then been amplified on social media.

“You’re going to have a lot of demagogues out there trying to take advantage,” the President said.

Newsom, who has been blamed for the disaster by the President-elect, invited Trump to visit Los Angeles and survey the devastation with him.

“We must not politicise human tragedy or spread disinformation from the sidelines,” said Newsom.

Wildfires occur naturally, but scientists say human-caused climate change is altering weather and changing the dynamics of the blazes.

Emergency managers apologised after false evacuation alerts were erroneously sent to millions of mobile phones, sparking panic.

– Agence France-Presse