CNN team describes the escape from a forest fire in South California

CNN team describes the escape from a forest fire in South California

CNN reporter Natasha Chen and her team ended a long day of reporting on the devastating forest fires , which raged in the Los Angeles area, while the sun went over the burned landscape. What initially started like a routine mandate quickly developed into a dangerous situation when the flames threatened houses and forced thousands of residents to evacuate.

a dangerous way home

"We were there from about twelve to 6 p.m. local time when we had just completed our last live report," Chen reported in an interview with the CNN presenter Rosemary Church. "However, what we hadn't guessed was how bad it had become south of us on the Pacific Coast Highway. We had heard that the flames had skipped the highway, but we hadn't seen what that really meant with our own eyes."

escape from the chaos

After they ended their report in Pacific Palisades, Chen and their team turned to a firefighter to get advice for a safe exit from the danger zone. "We drove to a fire engine, waved to him and asked: 'What do you think, what the best way is out of here?' He shook his head and said, 'Well, I think if you go south.' So that was our plan."

When they drove south, the situation was much worse than they expected. "It quickly became clear to us that flames blazed on both sides. Sparks flew across the street. I saw an emergency vehicle and decided that our best chance was to follow this car as close as possible. If it goes, he probably knows the best way," said Chen.

feeling of fainting

What followed was a terrifying journey through the chaos, in which the flames and dancing sparks were captured around the vehicle. "I heard an explosion to my right, and houses burned right next to the street," said Chen. "I held my breath, felt the heat out of the car while watching the sparks flew over the windshield. It was anything but ideal."

"We felt a impact while we drove past the burning houses-an explosion that looked like a blow on the car, but it was only the wave of energy that met us," said CNN producer Kat Jaeger, who was traveling with Chen. "Our car had no damage. I have never experienced anything like this." The CNN photographer Tom Larson noticed that it felt similar to in war areas, added Jaeger.

insight into the despair of residents

"We are often confronted with risky orders, and we had to weigh up a calculated risk to find out how we can best escape. Fortunately, we did it," said Chen. But the destruction she experienced left a lasting impression. "We got a real insight into the extent of the destruction - and the fear that many of these residents may feel. I can't imagine that. You wonder if your house is the next that will open in flames and whether you still have something you can come back to," she explains.

At the end of the day, the fire had hit at least 2,000 acres land, considerable growth compared to the first reports of only 20 acres. "This fire really exploded and spread several soccer fields per minute during the day," she added. "That surprised many residents. They are familiar with forest fires, but they had never experienced so close and so quickly."

Many residents were forced to make hectic decisions about what they should save. "They packed up what they could: their parents' wedding rings, the most important documents," she said. "One person said it almost doesn't feel real or don't make sense," recalled Chen.

a stirring image of the chaos

"If you look at the one side, you have the Pacific Ocean right there, but everything is covered by smoke. We talk about the iconic Pacific Coast Highway-the scenes that you know from the barbie film-it is not all sunshine and pink clothes. We speak of very foggy smoke, explosions, burning palm trees and houses. You.

The geography of the region made the evacuation measures further difficult, explained Chen. "As soon as you are down the slope, you only have the Pacific Coast Highway to either drive north or south. If there is a fire that jumps across the street, then you are pretty trapped. That was exactly the situation in which we were after we had completed our last livestream without knowing exactly how bad it was, where the flames were over."