The Eaton fire in Altadena started near a nature preserve just before 6:30 p.m. The flames spread so rapidly that staff at a senior care center had to push dozens of residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds down the street to a parking lot where they waited in their bedclothes for ambulances and other vehicles to take them to safety.

Firefighters battled early Thursday to control a series of major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes.

Southern California's Palisades Fire, fueled by a strong windstorm, has grown to 1,261 acres and prompted the city of Los Angeles to declare a state of emergency as 30,000 people have been forced to evacuate.