Flames from the Palisades Fire surrounded the car Aaron Samson and his 83-year-old father-in-law, who has Parkinson's disease, were in as they tried to escape.

A survivor of a coal mine disaster in India has shared a harrowing account of the moments after the tunnel was suddenly engulfed by water. Ravi Rai was working in the mine in the north-eastern state of Assam on Monday morning when water entered the pit.

Their escape came as thousands of people fled wildfires in the Los Angeles area that turned picturesque neighborhoods into smoldering wasteland, with chimneys or wrought-iron staircases about all that remained of homes.

Firefighters are making progress slowing the major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and caused thousands of people to flee their homes.

A fast-moving fire broke out in the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday night, threatening one of Los Angeles' most iconic spots as firefighters battled to get under control three other major blazes that killed five people,

The Los Angeles area wildfires have forced more than 100,000 people from their homes. Aaron Samson and his 83-year-old father-in-law, who has Parkinson's disease, escaped on foot from the Palisades Fire after they were forced to get out of their car.