Firefighters are racing to contain a rapidly spreading brush fire fueled by strong Santa Anna winds in northwest Los Angeles, and a historic PGA Tour golf course is now in a mandatory evacuation zone.
The Pacific Palisades fire was first reported shortly before 10:30 a.m. Pacific time near the Pacific Palisades Highlands community, east of Palisades Drive and about 5 miles as the crow flies from Riviera Country Club, which will host the Genesis Invitational next month. event organized by the Tiger Woods Foundation.
Originally, the Riviera was outside any evacuation zone, but the fire spread quickly with wind gusts (up to 160 km/h, according to NBC News) and within hours exceeded over 1,200 acres, the mandatory zone was expanded. The Riviera, located southeast of the fire, is currently in the red zone, which also extends west past Big Rock Beach and north to Topanga State Park.
According to NBC News, more than 30,000 people were evacuated.
More than seven years have passed since a fire struck the Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa, California, just hours after the conclusion of the 2017 Safeway Open. Although the golf courses remained relatively intact, the tournament stands went up in flames as a result of the Atlas Fire, which, along with nearby fires Tubbs and Nuns caused over a billion dollars in damages and killed over 30 people.
