Mandy Moore, Anna Faris, Milo Ventimiglia, Paris Hilton, Jeff Bridges, Bozoma Saint John, Mel Gibson, Billy Crystal, James Woods and Diane Warren are among the celebrities whose houses were destroyed by the blazes.

The first sign of worry for many was thick smoke blowing down from the hills of the affluent Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, which borders Santa Monica and the famous Malibu coast. LA residents are accustomed to wildfires but the Palisades fire spread rapidly out of control.