A 175-pound tortoise has managed to flee from the California wildfires.
A 175-pound tortoise known as Tiptoe has managed to flee from the California wildfires
Hundreds of homes have been destroyed in the affluent arena of Pacific Palisades but 23-year-old Tiptoe - who is owned by TikTok star Caitlin Doran - managed to get out to safety just in the nick of time and his story has amassed millions of views across social media.
Caitlin - who has more four million followers on her @caitlinandtiptoe page - told USA Today: "I'll give it a day, maybe go up there tonight just to see [what's left] because I'm curious. But, I mean there's, nothing there.
"We got him out at the perfect time. He wouldn't be here today."
Caitlin first heard about the fire on the morning and quickly parent's home in the Palisades - where she and the tortoise film content together - and decided to move him to the home of her aunt and uncle as a precaution but then took him to her own house in Marina Del Rey as things got worse.
She then returned to the Palisades once again in order to usher her grandparents - both of whom are in their eighties - to safety.
She said: "We had to go up the back way because everything was closed.
"When we got to the house I see my grandpa has a hose, my uncle has a hose there at the grandparent's house. My mom's on the roof, my dad's in the backyard with the hose.
"My boyfriend went up to my dad and he just had to say, 'It's done, the water stopped working.'"
Tiptoe was presented to Caitlin as a Christmas gift in 2001 and has lived in her parents' house since then and has become an integral part of the community.
Caitlin added: "We'll see how it goes now but every single day over summer, if weather permits, Tiptoe's out in the community "
"Our neighbors (grew) vegetables for him, they (grew) flowers for him. He's such a pillar of the community."
As well as Tiptoe, Caitlin has moved her grandmother, grandfather, aunt, uncle, brother and two cousins and admitted that they just have to "figure it out" together when it comes to moving on from the devastation.
She told People: "I mean, everybody lost their house,.
"So it's all of us. We're all going to be figuring it out together, but there's nothing to go back to.
"We're fifth-generation Palisadians. My mom, we lived across the street from my grandparents where my mom grew up. My aunt and uncle are three streets down, all gone. All of our houses are gone. My grandpa's, the property owner for the Ralphs, the Pharmaca, the hardware store and the car wash. I think the Ralphs is gone. I mean, the whole community's gone."
those belonging to former 'The Hills' stars Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, acting partners Leighton Meester and Adam Brody, as well as a mansion belonging to 'Scary Movie' actress Anna Faris.
Five civilian deaths were reported in one of the three largest wildfires ravaging LA, whilst stars such as Paris Hilton - who is married to Carter Reum and has Phoenix, 23 months, and 14-month-old London with him - is also among the celebs to have lost a home.
She posted on Instagram: “Heartbroken beyond words. (Broken heart emoji.)
“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. (Crying face emoji.)
“This home was where we built so many precious memories. It’s where Phoenix took his first steps and where we dreamed of building a lifetime of memories with London.”
John Goodman - who is known for his roles in 'The Flintstones' and 'Roseanne' - has also seen his home destroyed in the wildfires as his Pacific Palisades property was in the path of the main blaze.
Sir Anthony Hopkins’ home is also gone, according to pictures, whilst ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ star Miles Teller and his wife Keleigh also saw their $7.5million mansion, which they bought in April 2023, wiped out.
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