Raging wildfires in Los Angeles area kill at least 2 and destroy 1,000 structures

At least two people have died as fast-moving wildfire overrun Los Angeles, forcing more than 80,000 residents to evacuate.

The Palisades Fire has already burned through more than 5,000 acres and damaged over 1,000 houses; the Eaton Fire has spread to 10,600 acres; the Hurst Fire has affected 500 acres; and the Woodley Fire has 30 acres.

The fires were started by a mix of dry weather and strong winds, and they are having a tremendous impact well beyond the danger zones, with over 400,000 energy users out of power today, according to PowerOutage.com.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency's air quality index, smoke from the flames has lowered air quality in some Los Angeles and Pasadena communities to dangerous levels.

The Palisades Fire near Los Angeles was initially reported at 10:30 a.m. local time Tuesday and has spread to more than 11,000 acres with no control, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or CalFire.

A second wildfire, the Eaton Fire, broke out Tuesday night in the hills above Altadena, a neighborhood in northern Los Angeles County, resulting in evacuation orders.

L.A. Fire Chief Kristin M. Crowley informed President Biden this afternoon that the Palisades Fire had spread to 10,802 acres.

"High, high, high winds. I've never seen the winds (like this) in my 25 year career," she said. "It's an active, active fire fight with our firefighters, and they're doing the very best to protect our people within this area."

President Joe Biden visited a Santa Monica fire station this afternoon to receive an in-person briefing on the wildfires raging in the Los Angeles region.

Cal Fire said Wednesday that the Eaton Fire had spread to at least 10,600 acres.

Earlier in the day, the fire had scorched little more than 2,000 acres. Fire authorities reported the increased size just after 10 a.m. local time.

The Eaton Fire in Los Angeles County is endangering "tens of thousands of homes," according to officials.

The fire is located east of the Palisades Fire, which started Friday night and is presently 10,600 acres, with 0% containment. More than 750 firemen are responding to the fire, and two people have died, according to authorities.

“We’re doing our very best,” county fire department chief Anthony Marrone said.

According to PowerOutage.us, more than 400,000 homes, businesses, and other power consumers lost power by lunchtime Wednesday as numerous wildfires raged across Southern California.

The majority of the outages occur in hard-hit Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Many of the consumers had their electricity turned off on purpose.

Southern California Edison switched off power to more than 148,000 customers as part of "public safety power shutoffs," according to the electrical company.

Why is this done? The idea is to “temporarily shut off power to your neighborhood during dangerous weather conditions to prevent our electric system from becoming a source of ignition,” the company said. "These safety shutoffs are a measure of last resort for keeping you and your community safe."

In addition to the 148,000 deliberate outages, SCE has stated that it is exploring public safety power shutoffs for an additional 400,000 consumers.