At least two people have been killed, and mandatory evacuation orders are in place for more than 80,000 people in the Los Angeles area.
The California fires are growing so fast that first responders report they're having a hard time attacking the flames.
"It's been a long day and a long night, but we're safe. That's the most important part," said Wisconsin native Caitlin Morrall.
She is still wrapping her head around the last 24 hours.
Her home, located in the Highlands of the Pacific Palisades, is only three blocks from where one of the devastating California wildfires ignited.
"What was the moment when you and your husband said, we gotta go now? Was there an alert? Was there a sound?" Mackar asked.
Watch: Wisconsin native details California wildfire evacuation and destruction
"It was immediate. It was just seeing the smoke," Morrall said. "We looked out our bedroom window, and we just looked at each other and said, grab as much as we can and let's get out."
Morrall said she doesn't know what—if any—damage their house has sustained, but the destruction the fire left has already left a hole in their community.
"Even if our home is there, our grocery stores are gone, our restaurants are gone, our small businesses are gone," she said of the damage. "There's only one road in and one road out of the Palisades Highlands, and I know a lot of people saw footage of cars being bulldozed down. That's the main road to our house. So, some of our neighbors were stranded in their homes until they bulldozed those cars out of the way."
The emergency is extending to other regions in the LA area. Photos from Mequon native Brooke Bayer show the sky above Warner Brothers Studios turning black from smoke and flames.
The Red Cross has crews in California assisting anyone who needs help with evacuations or shelter. Wisconsin volunteers tell TMJ4 they are ready to head west whenever they are needed.
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