Darrin Hurwitz said what started as a small brush fire turned into a raging inferno within about half an hour. The Pacific Palisades resident, who lives on Las Lomas Avenue, said up to 20 homes were burning as he sought safety from the Palisades fire on Tuesday.

“Things happened so quickly,” said Hurwitz, who was working at home when the flames broke out. “Several fires occurred within a few minutes.”

Hurwitz said he walked through his home and picked up practical items, including clothes for his two elementary-aged children, laptops and medications, as well as more sentimental items like artwork and family heirlooms.

After arriving at his parents’ home in Calabasas, where he watched the news of the fire, he mourned the items his family may have lost. He wondered if his house was still standing. His children wondered if their school, Marquez Charter Elementary, which was evacuated Tuesday, was damaged and if they would be able to return.

Hurwitz, who grew up in Southern California, moved to Pacific Palisades from the East Coast more than two years ago, drawn to the community for its stunning views and family-friendly atmosphere. But he always thought about the risk of fire.

“There wasn’t a day that I lived there,” Hurwitz said, “that I didn’t think, firstly, that this was the most beautiful place in the world, and secondly, that at some point everything could go up in flames.” Period. “