Many had reportedly not been told by their employers about the mandatory evacuations and had no idea that the neighborhoods had no one in them.Smoke from the Getty Fire seen from Santa Monica, California As of December 22, 2019 , over 7,860 fires have been recorded according to Cal Fire and the US Forest Service, totaling an estimated of 259,823 acres (105,147 hectares) of burned land. The fire is believed to have started around 1:35 AM in the 1800 block of North Sepulveda Drive when a tree branch that broke off and subsequently landed in nearby powerlines during high wind conditions causing them to spark and arc - igniting nearby brush.At its height of operations, over 1,000 firefighters along with Evacuations were ordered for multiple neighborhoods as the fire progressed, although some were allowed back into their homes after only a few days.Anger was seen by some reporters after it was discovered that some of the more affluent neighborhoods that had been ordered to evacuate, still had gardeners, housekeepers and other domestic workers reporting for duty. Although the 2019 fire season had been relatively quiet in California through mid-September as compared to past years, October through December was still expected to have the greatest fire potential as the Diablo and Santa Ana winds pick up. The Getty Fire burns near the 405 Freeway on Oct. 28, 2019. The Getty Fire started around 1:35 a.m. Monday in the 1800 block of North Sepulveda Drive, amid a wind storm. Arson investigators determined that sparks from the lines, which remain intact and functional, ignited a nearby bush at the 1800 block of Sepulveda Boulevard, and flames spread quickly due to the Santa Ana winds.The LAFD has released a video of the fire igniting, captured by the dash cam of one of the first 911 callers to report the blaze. The fire is believed to have started around 1:35 AM in the 1800 block of North Sepulveda Drive when a tree branch that broke off and subsequently landed in nearby powerlines during high wind conditions causing them to spark and arc - igniting nearby brush. The 2019 wildfire season was a fire season in California, United States. The Nuns Fire started on October 8, 2017 around 10 pm and burned in Napa and Sonoma Counties. According to the most recent LAFD figures, the fire has burned a total if 656 acres, destroying 12 residences and damaging five.The Getty Fire is currently 15 percent contained, and firefighters are working to extinguish flare ups before another Santa Ana event begins at around 11 p.m. tonight. The Getty fire that sent thousands of Westside residents fleeing was started by a tree branch that fell on power lines, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Tuesday evening. The Getty fire was caused by a tree branch that broke off during high winds and blew into nearby power lines, officials announced during a press conference on Tuesday. https://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/how-getty-fire-started-video The National Weather Service has issued a rare âOfficials say a branch blowing into power lines ignited the blaze LOS ANGELES, CA — A little more than a day after the Getty Fire erupted close to the 405 Freeway near the Getty Center, firefighters are doing their best to combat the 658-acre blaze. Sparks from power lines, after they were hit by a tree branch, may have ignited the Getty fire, Los Angeles city officials said Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 29.