Los Angeles commuters had one hell of a drive to work Wednesday morning as a wildfire swept through the Bel-Air district, forcing the closure of at least one stretch of a major freeway.
The wildfire has reportedly reached about 50 acres in size and is still growing, fueled by 25-mph winds. While the freeway closures were in the name of safety, one negative result was a massive gridlock in one of Los Angeles' most congested and busy areas. Officials have issued a mandatory evacuation notice to at least one neighborhood filled with multimillion-dollar homes, as the fire has already started burning some down. More than 125 firefighters have been on the scene, and water-dropping helicopters are reportedly being used to quench the flames.
Terrified drivers took to social media to share dramatic photos and videos from their drives:
“This is My drive to work this. Lord ‘Be still,'” one Twitter user wrote. “Praying for [people] up in those mountains, LA County and myself this morning.”
Multiple wildfires are raging throughout Southern California, smothering the region in smoke. In addition to the Bel-Air fire, the Ventura County fire has forced at least 50,000 people to evacuate. Meanwhile, blazes from the Sylmar fire, Santa Clarita fire and San Bernardino fire have also had devastating effects.
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