When the Los Angeles wildfires erupted earlier this month, even Hollywood legends weren’t spared from the chaos. According to her nephew, Meryl Streep had to get creative to escape the dangerous flames.

On January 8, Streep received an evacuation order as the Palisades and Eaton fires raged nearby. But her way out wasn’t exactly straightforward. A massive tree had fallen across her driveway, blocking her only exit. Determined to leave, she borrowed wire cutters from a neighbor, sliced a car-sized hole in her shared fence, and drove through her neighbor’s yard to safety.

These wildfires are now considered the most destructive in LA history. Over 16,000 structures were damaged or destroyed, and tragically, 29 lives were lost.

Others in the area faced similar struggles. Filmmaker Joseph Kindred, who also goes by Jo Lenz, woke up in the middle of the night to burning embers falling near his Altadena home. He and his family had to flee immediately, leaving behind cameras and hard drives with unreleased footage of the late rapper Nipsey Hussle.

Actor Martin Short also shared his evacuation story. He was stuck in his car for over an hour on a route that usually takes five minutes. While his home survived, one of his sons lost his house in the blaze.

As residents begin to recover, stories like Streep’s remind us of the resilience required during such catastrophic events.