Massive Wildfire Torches Los Angeles Area, Causes Damage to Chabad Center of Pacific Palisades

by CrownHeights.info

A massive brush fire that has engulfed thousands of acres in the Los Angeles area is still burning out of control Tuesday night, with the Chabad Jewish Community Center of Pacific Palisades suffering damage to a small portion of their campus.

“Thank G-d we’re safe,” said Rabbi Sholom Diskin of Chabad of Pacific Palisades. “With G-d’s help, we are certain our community will survive and rebuild stronger than ever.”

The fire fanned by a dangerous windstorm in the Los Angeles area while millions of people across Southern California are under a red flag, fire warning. At present, no injuries or deaths have been reported from the Palisades blaze, which has burned more than 2,900 acres as of this evening.

“While we lost sixteen of our beautiful precious public Menorahs, they were in a storage area aligned to our parking lot,” Rabbi Zushe Cunin said in an interview with ABC News. “Thankfully our campus building is intact.”

Leading up to the fire reaching the Chabad center, preparations were made including removing the center’s Sifrei Torah from harms way.

California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency as nearly 30,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their homes.

Another fire also broke out near Eaton Canyon, far from the Palisades and northeast of Pasadena. It was also fueled by the high winds.