1 of 5 | Multiple homes burn Tuesday in Pacific Palisades, California. According to the National Weather Service, large portions of the Los Angeles area are under extreme wildfire risk through Thursday due to high winds and dry conditions. Photo by Allison Dinner/EPA-EFE

“I’ve proclaimed a state of emergency to support the communities impacted by the Palisades Fire,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote Tuesday in a post on X.

“Southern California residents: stay vigilant, take all necessary precautions and follow local emergency guidance.”

President Joe Biden, who is currently in Los Angeles, is being briefed on the fires, according to the White House.

Newsom thanked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for approving a Fire Management Assistance Grant to support affected areas.

“The president of the United States said, ‘Yes, what else do you need?’ Mercy proclamation to be drafted as we speak,” Newsom told reporters Tuesday.

“I just want to thank the president because that’s something I don’t take for granted. It’s something we should not take for granted at this moment in American history,” Newsom said.

More than 250 firefighters are fighting the fire that has engulfed much of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, as Southern California Edison shut off power to some areas to prevent its electrical system from igniting.

Among the thousands of residents evacuated was actor James Woods, who posted video of a neighbor’s house in flames.

“To all the wonderful people who’ve reached out to us, thank you for being so concerned,” Woods wrote Tuesday in a post on X.

“Just letting you know that we were able to evacuate successfully. I do not know at this moment if our home is still standing, but sadly houses on our little street are not.”

Pacific Palisades is located about 20 miles west of Los Angeles, along the Pacific coast.

The high winds began gusting Tuesday afternoon and are affecting much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties with peak wind speeds expected during the overnight hours early Wednesday morning.

Red flag warnings are in effect through 6 p.m. Thursday in the Malibu area, Calabasas, the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area and the San Gabriel, San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys.

The San Gabriel Mountains, Interstate 5 and 14 Freeway corridors also are under red flag warnings.

Evacuations snarled traffic along Interstate 10 between Santa Monica and Los Angeles and turned the relatively short drive into a nearly two-hour trek.

The fire started Tuesday morning and has an unknown cause, officials with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.

The fire grew to 772 acres by Tuesday afternoon with smoke clinging to a local ridge and forcing the closure of part of the Pacific Coast Highway and several local schools.

The Getty Villa Museum, which houses more than 44,000 antiquities and art dating from 6,500 BC to AD 400, has reported its grounds are catching fire.

“Today, a brush fire started in Pacific Palisades fueled by extremely high winds. At the Getty Villa, some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but no structures are on fire and staff and the collection remain safe,” the museum wrote in a post, adding that the Villa is closed to non-emergency staff and the public.

With wind speeds expected to increase overnight, the fire and any other flames in the area are likely to spread.

The high winds have forced officials at Southern California Edison to shut off power to more than 8,000 customers in Los Angeles, Riverside and Ventura counties due to the elevated fire risk.

San Diego Gas and Electric could shut off power to up to 65,000 customers in areas south of Riverside Country.

Especially strong winds are forecast in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, which raises the potential for wildfires in those areas, as well.