• Wildfires have broken out in Los Angeles and are raging through the Pacific Palisades neighborhood.
• Stars including Paris Hilton and Billy Crystal have lost their homes.
• The average house price in the northern LA area is $4.5 million, per Realtor.com data.

The biggest of the raging wildfires in Los Angeles is tearing through the Pacific Palisades neighborhood. Stars including Paris Hilton and Billy Crystal have lost their homes.

The area, located between Santa Monica and Malibu in northern Los Angeles, is home to some of the country's most expensive real estate. The average house price is $4.5 million, according to Realtor.com data. Ben Affleck, for instance, bought his $20.5 million mansion there in July.

Other celebrities, including Tom Hanks, Reese Witherspoon, Michael Keaton, Adam Sandler, Miles Teller, and Eugene Levy, also live in the neighborhood.

The fire started on Tuesday in the Pacific Palisades before spreading west toward the Malibu stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway. On Wednesday, the city of Malibu issued a statement on X advising residents to prepare to evacuate.

Paris Hilton said she 'built precious memories' at her destroyed Malibu home

On Wednesday, Paris Hilton shared on Instagram that she was "heartbroken beyond words" to learn that her Malibu home had been destroyed in the fire.

"Sitting with my family, watching the news, and seeing our home in Malibu burn to the ground on live TV is something no one should ever have to experience," Hilton wrote. "This home was where we built so many precious memories."

Although the loss felt "overwhelming," she said she was grateful that her family and pets were safe.

Billy Crystal's home, where he'd been living with his family for 46 years, was razed to the ground.

"We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can't be taken away. We are heartbroken of course but with the love of our children and friends we will get through this," Crystal said in a statement to People.

"The Pacific Palisades is a resilient community of amazing people and we know in time it will rise again. It is our home," he said.

The Oscar-nominated actor James Woods wrote on X Wednesday: "All the smoke detectors are going off in our house and transmitting to our iPhones. I couldn't believe our lovely little home in the hills held on this long. It feels like losing a loved one."

"The Hills" stars Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt also lost their home.

"I'm so sad our house is gone. I wish I could have gone back and got more," Montag said as she broke down crying in a video she posted on TikTok on Wednesday.

TMZ meanwhile published footage of Adam Brody and Leighton Meester's home in flames, as well as a photo of Anna Faris' home in ashes.

The songwriter Diane Warren, a 15-time Oscar nominee who has worked with stars like Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, shared on Instagram that her beach house of nearly 30 years was likely gone.

"It looks like it was lost in the fire last nite. There's a rainbow shining on it which I'm taking as a sign of hope for all creatures who have been affected by this tragedy," Warren wrote. "The animals and the rescue ranch are OK tho which is the most important thing. Stay safe everyone."

On Wednesday, "The Princess Bride" actor Cary Elwes wrote on Instagram that he and his family evacuated the area safely, but said their house was destroyed.

He wrote: "Sadly we did lose our home but we are grateful to have survived this truly devastating fire. Our hearts go out to all the families impacted by this tragic event and we also wish to extend our gratitude to all the fire fighters, first responders and law enforcement who worked so tirelessly through the night and are still at it."

Ricki Lake, the star of the original "Hairspray" movie and her self-titled talkshow, wrote in an Instagram post on Wednesday that her "dream home" overlooking Malibu was "gone."

In the caption Lake said she and her husband escaped from the house with Dolly, their dog, "and not much else."

Mark Hamill evacuated his home and described the fire as 'horrific'

Among the at least 130,000 LA residents asked to evacuate their homes was the "Star Wars" actor Mark Hamill. He said on Instagram that he had left his Malibu home on Tuesday with his wife, Marilou, and their dog, Trixie. He described it as the "most horrific fire since '93."

"Evacuated Malibu so last-minute there were small fires on both sides of the road as we approached PCH," he wrote.

Levy told The Los Angeles Times on Tuesday that he got stuck while trying to leave his neighborhood. "The smoke looked pretty black and intense over Temescal Canyon," Levy said. "I couldn't see any flames but the smoke was very dark."

Chet Hanks, the son of actors Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, wrote in an Instagram story on Tuesday: "The neighborhood I grew up in is burning to the ground rn. Pray for the Palisades."

Actor and singer Mandy Moore said in an Instagram story posted on Tuesday that she was among the residents ordered to evacuate. By Wednesday, the singer said in a follow-up story that she was unsure if her home "made it."

"Honestly, I'm in shock and feeling numb for all so many have lost, including my family," she wrote in an Instagram post. "My children's school is gone. Our favorite restaurants, leveled. So many friends and loved ones have lost everything too."

Jamie Lee Curtis said 'many' friends had lost their homes

On Wednesday night, "Halloween" actor Jamie Lee Curtis appeared on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and said, holding back tears: "Where I live is on fire right now."

She added: "It's just a catastrophe in Southern California. Obviously, there have been horrific fires in many places. This is literally where I live. Everything — the market I shop in, the schools my kids go to, friends.

"Many, many, many, many, many friends now have lost their homes."

Kate Beckinsale wrote in an Instagram post on Wednesday that "the whole of the Palisades being destroyed is unthinkably horrific.

"My daughter and I lived there for most of her childhood and most of her childhood is gone."

The "Serendipity" actor shared several other posts, including one thanking local firefighters and another sharing information about assembling an emergency bag.

Industry events in Hollywood have been cancelled

The Palisades Charter High School was also affected, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The campus was used for films including "Carrie," "Freaky Friday," "Project X," and MTV's "Teen Wolf" TV series.

The premieres for "Wolf Man" and "Unstoppable," scheduled for Tuesday, were canceled.

'It's fire year'

The fire that started on Tuesday spread quickly thanks to the Santa Ana winds, which created up to 100 mph gusts. The drought in Southern California also exacerbated the situation, creating dangerously dry conditions.

Wildfires in the western US have been steadily growing bigger and more severe for decades, while the time of heightened risk known as "fire season" has been getting longer each year.

A paper published in 2023 by researchers from the University of California, Irvine, found the human-caused climate crisis is the "major driver" for the state's increase in wildfires over the last quarter century.

"November, December, now January — there's no fire season, it's fire year. It's year-round," California Gov. Gavin Newsom said at a press conference on Tuesday.

Back in 2018, the Woolsey Fire burned almost 100,000 acres of land in California, affecting famous Malibu residents like Lady Gaga, Gerard Butler, Miley Cyrus, and several members of the Kardashian family.

Kim Kardashian and her then-husband Kanye West were widely criticized for hiring private firefighters to protect their $60 million home in Hidden Hills.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

A bill backed by celebrity and entrepreneur Paris Hilton is heading to President Biden's desk after the House passed the act on Wednesday, a week after it was cleared unanimously by the Senate.

The "Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act" requires more oversight for youth residential treatment facilities, a regulation Hilton has spent years lobbying for after testifying that she was sexually abused as a 17-year-old at a Utah boarding school.

The bipartisan bill was co-sponsored by 23 lawmakers including Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Ct., Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.

Once the bill is enacted, the Secretary of Health and Human Services has 45 days to enter into a contract with the National Academics of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to "conduct a study to examine the state of youth in youth residential programs and make recommendations," according to the text.

PARIS HILTON URGES HOUSE TO PASS 'STOP INSTITUTIONAL CHILD ABUSE ACT' AFTER SENATE'S UNANIMOUS APPROVAL

Hilton celebrated Congress passing the bill in a social media post on Wednesday where she stated, in part, "today is a day [she] will never forget."

"This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen Industry," she wrote on X.

She thanked the "countless survivors who shared their stories," the "families who stood with us" and the legislators "who chose courage over complacency."

"And to the children still trapped in these systems: I will never stop fighting for you. Change is possible!" she concluded.

PARIS HILTON CHAMPIONS CHILD WELFARE REFORM: 'MOST TRAUMATIZING EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE'

The act requires the National Academies to submit a report within three years, and every two years thereafter for a decade, detailing various issues, including the "nature, prevalence, severity, and scope of child abuse, neglect, and deaths" in the programs.

The reports must also include who is funding the youth residential programs at the state and federal levels.

Recommendations will also be made on how to better train those working in fields that may come into contact with institutionalized youth, and how to implement "positive behavioral interventions."

Hilton has also influenced similar legislation protecting institutionalized minors in eight states.

American media personality and businesswoman Paris Hilton is headed to Capitol Hill Monday to urge the GOP-led House to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act – a bill for which she has lobbied the last three years.

The bill cleared the Senate unanimously last week. 

Hilton told Fox News Digital in an interview she was "in tears" when the bill passed the upper chamber on Wednesday, calling it "such a monumental moment" for herself and her allies.

"It just makes me proud to know that every single senator recognized the urgency of this issue and supported something that I've worked so hard for," Hilton said. 

PARIS HILTON PRAISES GOP LAWMAKERS FOR SPONSORING BIPARTISAN STOP INSTITUTIONAL CHILD ABUSE ACT

The bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by 23 lawmakers including Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Ct., Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., aims to reform residential youth facilities for troubled kids. 

Hilton is now urging the House to take up the bill before the session ends this week. If the legislation fails to pass both houses before the new Congress sits in early January, the bill would have to be considered again by both legislative chambers.

"I just feel like it's so important to do this, because right now, there's just no regulation, and people are getting away with so much because they're not being watched," Hilton said. "So this bill is really just about transparency and just collecting that data so we can know where are the bad ones and where are the good ones, and just collect that data, because right now they're not able to do that."

PARIS HILTON SPOTTED AT WHITE HOUSE FOR MEETING ON CHILD ABUSE LAW

"When the U.S. Senate came together in a rare show of unity to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act unanimously on Wednesday December 11th, it was one of the best moments of my life," the letter continued. "It was proof that when we listen to survivors and put politics aside, we can create real, meaningful change. But this journey isn’t over. I can’t celebrate until this bill becomes law, and now it’s up to the U.S. House of Representatives to finish what the Senate started."

Hilton, an advocate of the bill since its inception, alleged in a New York Times video op-ed series last year that she was a victim of sexual abuse as a teenager in the 1990s, when she attended a boarding school in Utah. 

She said she was the victim of a "parent-approved kidnapping" when she was a misbehaving 16-year-old, with two men dragging her out of her home and into a congregate-care facility.

Last year, Hilton testified before the House Ways and Means Committee about her teenage experiences in these centers, describing them as "very emotional and traumatizing."

SATANIC TEMPLE'S NATIVITY DISPLAY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE DESTROYED, DEM REP CALLS FOR NEW DISPLAY

"As a teenager, I was sent to youth residential treatment facilities where I endured abuse that no child should ever experience," Hilton wrote in an open letter to House lawmakers Monday. "I was physically restrained, sexually abused, isolated, overmedicated, and stripped of my dignity. I was told I didn’t matter, that I was the problem, and that no one would believe me if I spoke up—not even my family. For years, I lived with the weight of that trauma, the nightmares, the shame. It wasn’t until I found my voice that I began to heal."

In a statement after the bill cleared the Senate, Cornyn said that "A lack of oversight and transparency in residential youth programs has allowed for the abuse of children in facilities across the country for far too long."

"I'm proud that the Senate unanimously passed this legislation to ensure the vulnerable children in these facilities are protected, and I want to thank the countless advocates who have bravely shared their stories to help end institutional child abuse."