Second LA wildfire breaks out in city of Pasadena as firefighters battle raging Palisades inferno

A second LA wildfire has broken out in city of Pasadena as firefighters continue to battle the raging Palisades inferno that has decimated communities across the city.

A Los Angeles County Fire Department captain told NBC Los Angeles that the fire had quickly grown to 20 acres and had the potential to explode to 500 acres. City of Pasadena spokesperson Lisa Derderian described the blaze as "spreading quickly."

Dubbed the Eaton Fire, it exploded to 200 acres and is burning near Altadena Drive and Midwick Drive, Altadena/Pasadena, according to CALFire. Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for zone PAS-EO19 which includes the area of Eaton Canyon.

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a state of emergency for Ventura and Los Angeles counties as the Pacific Palisades wildfire continues to decimate communities.

About 30,000 residents are under evacuation orders and more than 13,000 structures are under threat, said Kristin Crowley, fire chief of the L.A. Fire Department. Newsom said he saw “many structures already destroyed.” Officials did not give an exact number of structures damaged or destroyed in the blaze.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known, and no injuries had been reported, officials said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. Newsom warned residents across Southern California not to assume they are out of danger, saying the worst of the winds are expected between 10 p.m. Tuesday and 5 a.m. Wednesday.

Forecasters predicted the windstorm would last for days, producing isolated gusts that could top 100 mph (160 kph) in mountains and foothills — including in areas that haven’t seen substantial rain in months. The National Weather service said it could be the strongest Santa Ana windstorm in more than a decade across Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

Roughly half a million utility customers were at risk of having their power shut off to reduce the risk of equipment sparking blazes.

In the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in western Los Angeles, a fire swiftly consumed nearly 2 square miles (just over 5 square kilometers) of land, sending up a dramatic plume of smoke visible across the city. Residents in Venice Beach, some 6 miles (10 kilometers) away, reported seeing the flames. It was one of several blazes across the area.