
Firefighters are scrambling to contain the flames in the Getty Fire as high winds are predicted to whip Santa Ana tonight and threaten to expand the inferno.

The fire, which is the latest blaze to decimate California, ignited on Monday in LA's wealthiest neighborhoods just after 1.30am along the 405 Freeway and quickly spread to scorch 658 acres as of Tuesday afternoon, triggering a mass evacuation for 20,000 residents.

About 1,100 firefighters were summoned to Los Angeles County to fight the flames overnight, desperately spraying the Brentwood area. But as of early Tuesday the inferno is just 5% contained.

Firefighters are working around the clock to subdue the flames before the Santa Ana gusts, also known as 'devil winds', hit Tuesday night into Thursday with vicious 70mph blasts that could easily spread the fire.

The Getty Fire is just one of 17 devastating wildfires burning across California as of Tuesday, razing more than 94,000 acres of land. The fires have sent tens of thousands of locals fleeing, left millions without power, and turned the ocean in Malibu pink with fire retardant.

Celebrities are standing up to support California firefighters as they tackle the state's catastrophic fires.

Actor John Cena, who plays a firefighter in his upcoming film Playing With Fire, announced on Monday he'll make a $500,000 donation to firefighters. Katherine Schwarzenegger and Chris Pratt have also pledged to donate to the fire rescue effort.

The Getty Fire is the latest blaze to decimate California, this time hitting the wealthiest neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Firefighters are scrambling to contain the flames before tonight's devastating Santa Ana wind event

Firefighters dampen down hot spots on a charred hillside in Los Angeles. The blaze consumed more than 600 acres

A helicopter pictured making a water drop over hillsides near in Los Angeles on Tuesday

This aerial shot shows the Getty Center in Los Angeles standing perilously close to smoldering mansions hit by the Getty Fire

Shocking aerial images show how the Getty Fire already razed through the wealthy hills of Los Angeles and destroyed some homes leaving hillsides completely scorched near the Getty Center

About 1,100 firefighters were summoned to Los Angeles County to fight the flames overnight, desperately spraying the Brentwood area. But as of early Tuesday the inferno is just 5% contained. The wind-driven Getty wildfire broke out Monday night and destroyed eight residences in just 24 hours

The Getty Fire is currently threatening some of the wealthiest areas of Los Angeles as crews work for a second day to tackle the flames and prevent the brush fire from spreading. As of Tuesday morning the fire was just 5% contained and more than 20,000 people were under evacuation orders

Seventeen wildfires are currently blazing in California, razing through 94,000 acres of land as of Tuesday. Firefighters pictured above tackling the Getty fire near the Getty Center in Los Angeles on Monday evening

Eleven of the biggest fires raging through California pictured above. The Getty Fire in Los Angeles is the latest fire which sparked Monday and threatened some of the city's wealthiest neighborhoods. Meanwhile the devastating Kincade fire in northern California swelled to twice the size of San Francisco by Tuesday

This map shows the fires concentrated in Los Angeles County. The active fires include the Tick, Saddle Ridge, Getty and Palisades Fires

'And on behalf of Playing With Fire' and out of respect to the people who I truly believe are heroes my response will be to immediately donate half a million dollars to this cause,' Cena said. 'In times like this, when people are giving their lives and working around the clock what they need from us is resources.'

Former First Lady of California Maria Shriver also shared an Instagram post praising first responders for their work in tackling the fire and evacuating locals on Tuesday.

'For many like myself, mandatory evacuations are still in effect with high winds expected tonight. To all of our first responders, thank you for staying on this, we are heeding your advice and staying safe! Remember, just because you don’t see active fire right now, doesn’t mean it might not happen tonight when the wind picks up,' she shared.

Officials say preventing the Getty Fire from expanding under Santa Ana winds is a priority. The natural phenomena are strong and extremely dry downslope gusts that originate inland and are famous for fanning regional wildfires.

'Our focus was taking full advantage of those conditions overnight,' Margaret Stewart, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokeswoman, said on Monday evening's Getty Fire effort.

The wind gusts, forecast to be 'remarkable and dangerous' are expected to be the worst the region has seen this season, according to the National Weather Service in Los Angeles. It will bring will bring gusts of 60mph to 70mph winds in the valley and up to 80mph winds in the mountains.

'It only takes one ember to blow downwind to start another fire. We’re very concerned about tonight’s wind event,' LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas said to the Los Angeles Times.

'We know we're going to have a major wind event tonight at about 11 o'clock that's going to last until Thursday. We're doing everything we can to wrap our arms around this fire to be able to prevent a potential of those strong gusty Santa Ana winds, pushing this fire, rekindling a lot of the fire and blowing embers a mile to two miles down range,' Assistant Chief Jaime Moore with Los Angeles Fire said.

As a result of the fire some 20,000 residents have been ordered to evacuate.

Actor John Cena, who plays a firefighter in his upcoming film Playing With Fire, announced on Monday he'll make a $500,000 donation to firefighters

Actor Chris Pratt followed suit saying: 'So thankful to the men and women in uniform who risk it all, working around the clock to save our lives, homes and city'

Former First Lady of California Maria Shriver shared an Instagram post praising first responders for their work in tackling the fire and evacuating locals on Tuesday

'For many like myself, mandatory evacuations are still in effect with high winds expected tonight. To all of our first responders, thank you for staying on this, we are heeding your advice and staying safe! Remember, just because you don’t see active fire right now, doesn’t mean it might not happen tonight when the wind picks up,' she shared

Former California governor Arnold Scwarzenegger also praised firefighters saying: 'Right now I am grateful for the best firefighters in the world, the true action heroes who charge into the danger to protect their fellow Californians.'

Kate Beckinsdale shared this Instagram on Monday to announce she was safe and commend the LA Fire Department

Katie Couric also lifted up prayers to victims of the Getty Fire on Monday

'I’m sure we’ve all gotten phone calls and had conversations with people saying "Well, there’s not a lot of smoke it should be fine to go home." I want to continue to tell people listen to the professionals and the firefighters who are asking you to stay away,' Mayor Eric Garcetti warned Tuesday.

While the Getty Fire wreaked havoc in Southern California, the Kincade inferno was spreading at a rapid pace in Northern California displacing some 200,000 as it razed through over 75,000 acres as of Tuesday.

The Kincade Fire, which ignited on October 23, has swelled to twice the size of San Francisco in just 24 hours from Sunday to Monday, destroying the heart of wine country by scorching a whopping 74,324 acres of land. As of Monday evening the expanding fire was just 15 percent contained.

San Francisco firefighters shared heart-stopping video on Tuesday showing the front window view of a firetruck rushing to the front lines of the fire on a burning hill in Sonoma County, passing through thick smoke, orange flames, and blazing embers.

San Francisco Firefighters Local 798 shared the footage on Twitter showing the Kincade Fire rage at 3am adding: 'We appreciate their complete dedication to the task of protecting lives and property.'

So far the Kincade Fire has destroyed 123 structures - 57 of which were residential homes. About 90,000 structures are still threatened by the blaze, according to Cal Fire spokesman Jonathan Cox.

On Tuesday more than 26 million people from California to Arizona were placed under red flag warnings meaning winds, temperatures and humidity levels were dangerous and prone to spreading fires.

San Francisco firefighters shared heart-stopping video on Tuesday showing the front window view of a firetruck rushing to the front lines of the fire on a burning hill, passing through thick smoke, orange flames, and blazing embers

San Francisco Firefighters Local 798 shared the footage showing the Kincade Fire rage at 3am adding: 'We appreciate their complete dedication to the task of protecting lives and property'

Illinois couple Katie and Curtis Ferland, who got married in Sonoma County in Northern California in the midst of Kincade’s fury, posed for a dramatic wedding portrait on Saturday wearing masks as the inferno blazed just miles away

Efforts to quell the fire from spreading led authorities to sprinkle fire retardant over Malibu, turning the ocean pink

This NASA photo released Tuesday from NASA's Terra satellite shows the massive smoke plume cascading down California's coast from the devastating Kincade Fire in Sonoma County which has grown past 74,000 acres

'We’re playing both offense and defense right now on two different sides of the fire, and we’re going to have to flip-flop that tomorrow when that wind event comes through,' he said Monday evening at a press conference.

1.5million in the dark: PG&E to begin new phase of blackouts The Pacific Gas & Electric Co. utility has begun a new phase of shutting off power in parts of its Northern California service area Tuesday morning to try to prevent its equipment from sparking wildfires during periods of strong winds and extremely dangerous fire conditions. Utility spokeswoman Ari Vanrenen said Tuesday that the utility began the process of shutting off power early Tuesday to about 46,000 customers in Butte, Tehama, Plumas, Trinity and Shasta counties. There are about 2.5 people for every customer, meaning about 115,000 people are affected. The preventative measures come after PG&E was scrutinized for the role of its equipment in contributing to past fires such as the deadly 2018 Camp Fire, which led to at least 85 civilian casualties. Red Cross volunteer Barbara Wood gives a hug to a Kincade fire evacuee at a Red Cross shelter in Santa Rosa on Sunday Vanrenen says power could be cut later Tuesday to 596,000 customers in 29 counties. That would affect 1.5 million people. Some Californians are preparing to be left in the dark for five days or longer in the blackouts. Across the region, it was clear that patience was wearing thin and frustration at the utility was growing. Jim Keefauver rests at a Red Cross shelter set up for wildfire evacuees in Santa Rosa on Sunday Southern California Edison had cut off power to about 800 people as of Monday night and warned that it was considering disconnecting about 400,000 more as winds return midweek. 'PG&E can't figure out how to deliver power reliably without killing people,' Petaluma resident Scotty Richardson said. 'This is more than three strikes - it's a failure of epic proportions.' 'It's so obvious it's just to protect them from more liability,' Janet Luoma of Santa Rosa said at a Red Cross evacuation shelter. Source: Associated Press Advertisement

The Kincade fire is particularly hard to contain due to the steep topography of the densely forested hills it's located in. It's also fueled by hurricane-force winds that saw it grow at a rate of one football field every three seconds when it first ignited, CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller said.

Winds are expected to reach 20 to 30mph on Tuesday and will reach 50mph by evening. Officials believe the blaze can be put out by November 7.

'We tentatively believe the fire will be contained November 7th, again that is our best estimate based on models and projections,' Cox said. 'As far as when every smoking stump may be extinguished, that could be weeks if not months.'

There have been no deaths reported in the Kincade Fires however two first responders have been hospitalized due to burns, officials said. Cox said one person suffered a serious burn injury and was flown to UC Davis Medical Center and a second person was treated at a local hospital for a minor burn.

An Illinois couple who got married in Sonoma County in Northern California, in the midst of Kincade’s fury, posed for a dramatic wedding portrait on Saturday wearing masks.

Wedding photographer Karna Roa of KMR Photography took the poignant of the newlyweds Katie and Curtis Ferland, of Chicago, who got married at the Chateau St. Jean Winery in Kenwood as the Kincade Fire burned just miles away.

'The whole area, of course, was super smoky,' Roa said to Fox. 'I would love to say this is the first time it has happened, but this is the third year in a row in October that wine country has experienced this.'

The perilous winds led Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. to enforce a blackout starting early Tuesday that will cut power for 596,000 customers - about 1.5million people - spanning 29 Northern California counties, according to Fox News.

The utility began by shutting power off for 46,000 customers in Butte, Tehama, Plumas, Trinity and Shasta counties. California resident can check for updates on PG&E outages here.

The preventative measures come after PG&E was scrutinized for the role of its equipment in contributing to past fires such as the deadly 2018 Camp Fire, which led to at least 85 civilian casualties.

Meanwhile in Southern California, 205,000 customers in seven counties are under consideration for possible power shutoffs, according to Southern California Edison.

Southern California Edison had cut off power to about 800 people as of Monday night and warned that it was considering disconnecting about 400,000 more as winds return midweek.

However, the shutoffs have sparked outrage.

Petaluma resident Scotty Richardson had his power shut off on Saturday and said the prospect of going on without electricity for several days makes him 'furious, furious'.

'PG&E can't figure out how to deliver power reliably without killing people,' he said. 'This is more than three strikes - it's a failure of epic proportions.'

On Sunday a grass fire broke out along the I-5 highway in Natomas near Sacramento, torching cars and sending local scrambling on foot for safety

Good Samaritan Gerald Contreras recorded the chaos along the highway where the median caught ablaze. In the harrowing footage he guides trapped drivers to drive through a cut hole in a wire fence to escape the blazing road

Frantic locals were seen running away from the sudden grass blaze under the direction of Contreras

The Sunday I-5 highway blaze near Sacramento was so strong it left some cars completely burned to ash

'Fortunately, everybody got out OK. There was nobody hurt other than a few cars,' Contreras (left) said on the grass blaze

This PGE map shows the areas that will experience power outages (highlighted in orange) on Tuesday due to wildfires

By 7am the power was cut to customers in Sonoma, Napa and Solano counties in California on Tuesday

By 11pm the outages will be expanded to include Marin, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Alameda, and Santa Clara Counties on Tuesday

This map shows the Public Safety Power Shutoff by PG&E (noted in purple) as of Tuesday morning, affecting areas in Northern California

'It's so obvious it's just to protect them from more liability,' Janet Luoma of Santa Rosa said to AP at a Red Cross evacuation shelter.

'They don't seem to know what the hell they're doing,' Santa Rosa resident Chris Sherman who was forced into shelter said of PG&E. 'I'm not sure that they're really protecting anything.'

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said that utilities deserve to be 'aggressively penalized' for relying heavily on power outages.

Small fires have contributed to the overall fire catastrophe ravaging California. On Sunday a grass fire broke out along the I-5 highway in Natomas near Sacramento, torching cars and sending local scrambling on foot for safety.

Good Samaritan Gerald Contreras recorded the chaos along the highway where the median caught ablaze. In the harrowing footage he guides trapped drivers to drive through a cut hole in a wire fence to escape the blazing road.

These hotspots on the map issued by the National Weather Service show were the most intense fires were burning on Monday, October 28 both in and around Los Angeles and Northern California

Firefighters pictured at the scene of the Getty wildfire near the Sepulveda Pass in Los Angeles where flames climbed a hillside

The area from Mulholland Drive south and east to the 405 Freeway where evacuated, sending 20,000 residents packing, as per the Los Angeles Fire Department

A firefighter tries to hose down flames as a home burns in the Getty fire area along Tigertail Road

A man walks past a home being destroyed by the Getty fire in Los Angeles

Fire and fury: Flames ravage a farm structure in Windsor where the Kincade Fire was only 15 per cent contained last night and may not be fully under control until the second week of November

How the rich hire private firefighters in California's wildfires Kim Kardashian West came under fire last year when it was revealed she and husband Kanye West hired private firefighters to protect their Hidden Hills home. Don Holter, the owner of Mt. Adams Wildfire, is a private contractor in the Sierra Nevada foothills near Sacramento. His company is one of only five private firms in California that works directly for homeowners. 'It’s not who you are, it’s who you know,' he said. Service can cost up to $3,000 a day. Last year the company was on call for close to 90 days. A majority of private fire crews work for insurance companies like Chubb, USAA and Safeco which offer fire mitigation services for policyholders in high-risk fire areas without extra charge. Most of these brigades are actually in charge of fireproofing homes rather than fighting the flames themselves. Covered 6, a private security firm outside LA that contracts with homeowners in Malibu and Hidden hills, is working on cross-training security guards to fight fires. In the Woolsey Fire last year nearly 2,000 residents of Hidden Hills including celebrities like the Kardashians, Drake, and Jessica Simpson, were forced to evacuate. In that fire Covered 6 security guards held the fire at bay using pool pumps and fire houses. 'They saved our home and saved our neighborhood. I had them make sure they controlled every house on the edge. So it wasn’t just my home that I said take care of. I said, "Take care of everything,"' Kim Kardashian said. However, some Hidden Hills residents say that the agents didn’t do anything to keep the fire away. 'The story about Kim and Kanye sending private fighters to save Hidden Hills — that was completely untrue. That really played no part,' Steve Freedland, who was the Hidden Hills mayor at the time, said. Source: The New York Times Advertisement

'The median actually caught fire and I think that's what scared a lot of people. So, a lot of the cars were trying to get away from the median and they were going to the shoulder. And then the fire caught on the shoulder as well and they were trapped,' Contreras said to ABC10.

'Fortunately, everybody got out OK. There was nobody hurt other than a few cars,' Contreras added.

Several of the fires are concentrated in LA County. The Saddle Ridge Fire, which started on October 10, continues to wreak havoc in LA country spanning 8,79 acres. The Tick Fire, which started on October 24, is also expanding in LA county covering 4,65 acres.

The fires have raised alarm as they come in the wake of last year’s devastating fires which decimated California and raised concern over how wildfires have been growing in intensity over the past few years.

The World Meteorological Organization reported although wildfires have decreased over the years, they've grown in their size, intensity, and scope.

In the Getty Fire the area from Mulholland Drive south and east to the 405 Freeway where evacuated, sending 20,000 residents packing, as per the Los Angeles Fire Department.

So far eight residences have been destroyed and six have been damaged but at least 10,000 residences remain threatened by the fire, as per CNN.

The fire is believed to have been sparked by a downed power pole, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a news conference Monday. An investigation s taking place to see if that is true.

'We just don’t have a definitive answer. Our focus right now is getting people back in their homes,' LA Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey said to Bloomberg.

For the moment the fire has not expanded and crews are working to keep it that way.

'The good news is that the fire has not grown at all,' Garcetti said. 'It remains in place where it is,' he added.

The famed Getty Center museum, a renown LA landmark home to Rembrandt and Van Gogh works from the top of the Santa Monica Mountains was spared from the fire as its located just outside the evacuation area.

Firefighters try to dampen the Getty Fire as it climbs a hillside on Mandeville Canyon on Monday

The homes of Kate Hudson, Gwyneth Paltrow, LeBron James, Josh Duhamel, and Arnold Schwarzenegger are located in an area under mandatory evacuation orders

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James revealed his family had to evacuate their house in the middle of the night, saying the fires were 'no joke'

It's not clear how much, if any, damage LeBron James' multi-million dollar home (pictured before the fire) has sustained

As thousands of firefight tackled blazes across the state overnight, a group of wealthy elites have hired their own private brigades. Kim Kardashian West came under fire last year when it was revealed she and husband Kanye West hired private firefighters to protect their Hidden Hills home in the Woolsey blaze

The Getty Fire threatens 90,000 buildings in its evacuation zone and around 587,000 Pacific Gas & Electric customers remained without power on Monday afternoon due to intentional blackouts meant to limit the risk of wildfires expanding, according to the New York Times.

Southern California is expected to be under a red flag warning from Tuesday night through Thursday afternoon due to strong wind gusts.

At least 16 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District remained closed Tuesday due to the fire.

About 40 miles north of LA the Tick Fire, which ignited Thursday and burned over 4,600 acres, reached round 82% containment Monday night, according to the Cal Fire incident map. About 50,000 were ordered to evacuate in that fire.

Firefighters managed to save part of this home in Los Angeles during the Getty fire

A burnt-out washing machine in a destroyed home is covered in ash

Some homes were completely destroyed, including this one with the skull on its front lawn - presumable a Halloween decoration