Exclusive: Blaze Media runs into actor Dennis Quaid as Palisades fire threatens new swaths of LA County

BRENTWOOD, Calif. — Fear and frustration swept through Los Angeles over the weekend as the Palisades fire, which has destroyed much of Pacific Palisades and Malibu, made its way toward the San Fernando Valley and Brentwood.

The Palisades fire’s trajectory prompted new evacuations in neighborhoods to the north in Encino and to the south in Mandeville Canyon. The response from firefighters on the ground and in the air went into overdrive as they tried to stop the flames from reaching the denser neighborhoods and I-405. If the fire broke containment, it would rip through areas where hundreds of thousands live and cut off a major highway that connects Los Angeles County.

‘A bunch of politicians pointing fingers at each other. I don’t want to hear that stuff on the news.’

Unlike at the beginning of last week, first responders had a much easier time containing the fire because it was no longer windy, allowing air assets to drop water and fire retardant. The fire was also burning at a slower pace downhill. Most of the homes in Mandeville Canyon, where big-name celebrities live, were abandoned by Saturday. Fire crews and media were the only traffic going up and down the roads.

While workers have made great progress in containing the Palisades fire, the region is not out of the woods yet. The deep slopes of the hills are covered in dead leaves, branches, and undergrowth, which only serve as additional fuel for the inferno. The dreaded Santa Ana winds are expected to pick up once again this week.

At one home, firefighters were using garden hoses to douse the wooden decks and dead leaves with water as the fire came down the hillside. Nearby, a homeowner had left his hose running to spray his wooden roof.

Blaze Media encountered actor Dennis Quaid as he was finishing evacuating from his home in the canyon Friday evening. When asked if he has the same concerns and frustrations as others about how ill prepared the local and state governments were for the wildfires, despite ample warning, Quaid replied, “Oh, hell yeah!”

“A bunch of politicians pointing fingers at each other. I don’t want to hear that stuff on the news. I want people out doing stuff about it. … So gotta hit the ground running. It’s time to give up politics,” Quaid added.

Access to Mandeville Canyon is tightly controlled. The California National Guard man checkpoints and police check press credentials in an effort to prevent looters from ransacking abandoned homes.

In nearby Santa Monica, the police department revealed to Fox News’ Bill Melugin that its officers have arrested 10 burglary suspects since the fires began. None of those arrested live in the areas where they were caught and often had tools to break into homes.

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