Actor James Woods recalls chaotic moments as Palisades fire gained momentum, praises 'good' neighbors for help

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Actor James Woods says 'it's possible' his house is still standing

Actor James Woods describes surviving the deadly Pacific Palisades fire on 'The Ingraham Angle.'

Actor James Woods recalled the chaotic moments Tuesday afternoon in Pacific Palisades as a deadly wildfire began sweeping across his neighborhood, destroying home after home. 

Woods and his family fled their house as the flames inched closer and closer. He’s unsure if his house is still standing but told "The Ingraham Angle" Wednesday "it’s possible."

"It's astonishing that what happened during this experience was that we found out that none of us is a celebrity. None of us is a poor person or a rich person, a Democrat or a Republican. We were just neighbors, just really helping each other," said Woods.

RAGING PALISADES FIRE DESTROYS HIGH SCHOOL FEATURED IN MULTIPLE HOLLYWOOD FILMS

A structure burns during the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, US, on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. Uncontrolled wildfires tore through parts of the Los Angeles region, fanned by extreme winds, forcing thousands of residents to flee and grounding firefighting aircraft. Photographer: Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The multiple-time Emmy Award winner added that his neighbor ran over to his house after he and his family had evacuated to try and stop the flames from coming onto his deck, even staying overnight to fight the blaze.

"It was an extraordinary experience of realizing how essential good neighbors, good friends, good relative[s] [are]," said Woods. 

His neighbor told him Wednesday morning that the houses to the left and right of him had burned down, as well as "every house" across the street, but Woods’ roof was still visible.

PHOTO GALLERY: PALISADES FIRE BEFORE AND AFTER

A fire-damaged Bank of America branch is seen after the Palisades Fire swept though in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (Eugene Garcia/AP)

Officials estimated Wednesday morning that more than 1,000 structures had burned as the wildfire continues to besiege Los Angeles County. 

Woods told Fox News host Laura Ingraham he saw a firetruck parked in front of his house as the blaze started growing, but the firefighters couldn’t pump any water because "there was none."

Erik Scott, the public information officer for the Los Angeles Fire Department, acknowledged in a post on X that there were indeed challenges with regard to water pressure. 

"LADWP [Los Angeles Department of Water and Power] proactively filled all available water storage tanks, including three 1-million-gallon tanks located in the Palisades area," Scott wrote. "However, water availability was impacted at higher elevations, which affected some fire hydrants due to limited replenishment of water tanks in those areas. The extreme demand caused a slower refill rate for these tanks which created a challenge for our firefighting effort."

An airtanker made a drop on the Palisades Fire.  (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Woods called out California Gov. Gavin Newsom for his alleged fire mismanagement and said the ongoing aftermath of the wildfire is more than a "wake-up call."

"If it is true that things were handled this way. If it is true that Gavin Newsom is the absolute blithering idiot that I believe he is in the way he has handled fire management in this state again and again and again and again, this isn't a wake-up call. This is the kind of thing they have tribunals for – where they try people and say, you had an oath of office to perform certain duties," said Woods. 

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"When you're the fire chief, this isn't a social justice exercise that you're in charge of. This is you getting water to areas that need water because there are fires in hundred-mile-an-hour winds burning houses to the ground."