Southern CA residents describe frightening scenes in Los Angeles: 'It looks completely apocalyptic'

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- As deadly wildfires continue to rage through Los Angeles -- and tens of thousands of people evacuate -- ABC11 spoke with those living through the carnage unfolding in Southern California.

Ryan Abourisk grew up in Raleigh but moved to Los Angeles in 2014 -- where he stayed for 8 years -- before moving back to the city this past September. Both of his parents grew up in Southern California, and his 93-year-old grandfather still lives there.

"It looks completely apocalyptic. You look out your window and you just see a dark gray cloud of smoke," Ryan said of the scene outside his home in Culver City.

For Ryan, the images of his mother's hometown of Pacific Palisades -- and her own childhood home -- going up in smoke has been hard to stomach.

"You see stuff on the news all the time but it's never real until you're put into that predicament and experiencing for yourself," he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, ABC11 spoke with Ryan's mother, Diane, by phone, who described the gut-wrenching news her father's -- Ryan's grandfather's -- home of more than 60 years had been destroyed in the blaze. That was news Ryan had to deliver to him this morning.

"They just got so lucky with what they have, and to have that taken away from them in an instant it just feels surreal," he said.

Back in the Triangle, ABC11 caught up with passengers flying in from Los Angeles on Wednesday night.

"When we went out this morning to go to the airport, we noticed that our pool was very dark. A lot of ash is in the pool. And when we got to the airport, it looked very, very bad up north," said Dan Knobloch, who lives outside Long Beach.

Knobloch and his wife are in Raleigh visiting their son and newborn grandson. They've lived in Southern California for decades, but Dan said these fires feel different.

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"This is like actually nothing I've ever seen it's in a residential area pretty much. It's unfortunate for those people. I feel for them," he said.

For Ryan -- who lives in Culver City now, just a few miles from the fire that took his family's home -- he said all he can do is stay ready.

"I can be gone in six or seven minutes, which I hope doesn't happen. But with the way things are going, it's really hard to tell what's gonna happen," Abourisk said.