Steve Guttenberg calls LA wildfires ‘great equalizer,' urges people to lean on one another
Steve Guttenberg is continuing his efforts to help first responders and those affected by the Los Angeles wildfires.
During an interview with Fox News Digital, the actor, best known for his roles in "Police Academy" and "Three Men and a Baby," shared footage of damage to the Pacific Palisades neighborhood from the flames and explained why he thinks the catastrophe is a "great equalizer."
"It's a great equalizer because it doesn't matter how much money you have, the big house you have, your own fancy car you have," he said. "At the end of it, you're just walking down the street with a small little suitcase looking to evacuate and looking for somebody to help you get to where you're going. That's all you got."
ACTOR STEVE GUTTENBERG HELPS PALISADES FIRE FIRST RESPONDERS AS FLAMES RAGE, ‘IT’S A GHOST TOWN'
Earlier this week, Guttenberg sprang into action to help firefighters and moved cars stranded on Sunset Boulevard by residents fleeing the fire, he exclusively told Fox News Digital.
"It's kind of like Zombieland, you know. There's all these abandoned cars all over the street," the star explained Tuesday.
Guttenberg urged people who were leaving their vehicles behind while evacuating to also leave their keys so crews could make their way through to the fire.
"What people do is that they abandon their cars, and it's a crisis. And they don't leave their keys in their cars," Guttenberg told Fox News Digital Jan. 7. "What happens is, the fire trucks can't get up the street because they have all these abandoned cars with no ability to move them. So, what I was doing was helping out move cars and put them up on the hill and clear the way for the fire department."
Guttenberg noted the inferno was "the biggest fire that we've ever seen in the Palisades. It's enormous."
"We've had small fires, but this is definitely the biggest one, and it's just burning out of control in certain areas," he said. "I was able to make it up here, sort of a pocket where there is no fire. So, everybody's safe.
"And I just wanted to see what I can do to help out some of my neighbors, but it's a ghost town. Everybody's gone. And I think that's what's important. That's what it should be in a big fire like this."
Now, after some time to reflect, Guttenberg said he was "overwhelmed" with what he had first witnessed two days ago.
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"I just was overwhelmed and overcome when I saw my house from the road, and my entire block was intact," he told Fox News Digital Thursday. "But we live in a community of about 80 homes — a little, little development — and about 20 of those homes are burned. So it's very, very upsetting. And now it's time to help my neighbors.
"The smoke is terrible," he added. "I'm helping all my neighbors. And there's about eight guys who stayed back. And we're all going to help each other. There's no water. We have no water, no water anywhere. And we have to pool water."
As of Thursday, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone announced the Eaton and Palisades wildfires were 0% contained. The Eaton Fire has spread to 10,600 acres, and the Palisades Fire has reached 17,234 acres.
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Another wildfire in Acton has been 40% contained, Marrone said. That blaze was limited to just 348 acres.
Firefighters have also successfully stopped the forward progress of the Sunset Fire in the Hollywood Hills, officials said.
Roughly 180,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, and 200,000 more are under evacuation warnings.
Guttenberg said he anticipates people will feel "a lot of depression" after it all sinks in.
"I think that we're going to deal with a lot of depression after this, a lot of sadness," he said. "And it's going to be really tough because this is like nothing you've ever seen.
"I think you rely on anything that you believe in. If you believe in your mom and dad, you rely on them, your brothers and sisters, your friends, your family. God. The universe. Just remember, you're not alone."