Wildfire evacuation orders extend to Getty Center, one of Los Angeles’ premier museums

As wildfires continue engulfing Los Angelesauthorities on Friday evening expanded evacuation orders to an area that includes the Getty Center, home to one of the city’s most prized art collections.

The evacuation order in Brentwood, a neighborhood west of the 405 Freeway, comes just days after the museum’s other campus, the Getty Villa, was destroyed. line of fire. The Getty Center and the Getty Villa are closed until at least January 16.

As of Saturday morning, the center is “complying with the evacuation order in effect and is closed with only emergency personnel on site,” Alexandria Sivak, a museum representative, told USA TODAY.

Here’s what to know about the Getty Center as explosive wildfires spread across its Brentwood campus:

What is the Getty Center?

Opened in 1997, the Getty Center is home to several parts of the Getty Trust, including a museum, a library, and dozens of acres of gardens.

The museum features an extensive collection of European paintings, drawings, sculptures and other rotating exhibits. Among the museum’s most valuable works of art are “Iris.“

Is the Getty Center fireproof?

Designed with wildfire prevention in mind, the Getty Center is “the safest place for art in the event of a fire.” according to a 2019 article on the Getty website.

When a 600-acre fire broke out around the center in October 2019, the museum said there was no need to evacuate its works because they were safe inside the campus.

“We have a very important building here,” Mike Rogers, the museum’s director of facilities, said in the 2019 article. “It was well thought out and carefully constructed, and it is maintained and operated with great care. I’m very proud of it, and of our incredible team, we feel very safe here.

The center’s buildings are made of protected fire-resistant stone, concrete and steel, and the roof is covered with fire-resistant stone aggregate. The buildings also include fire separations so that doors can isolate specific areas of the campus in the event of a fire.

Outside, drought-tolerant plants and an extensive irrigation system provide an extra layer of defense.

Is the Getty Villa safe from fires?

As of January 10, staff, artwork and buildings at the Getty Villa have been safe from fire, according to a report. statement on the museum’s Instagram page.

The fires burned trees and vegetation on the museum grounds, but museum officials said this week they made significant “fire mitigation efforts” to protect the collection. The villa sits off the Pacific Coast Highway in the Pacific Palisades area, which has seen the worst wildfires.

“We are of course very concerned for our neighbors in Pacific Palisades, Malibu and the surrounding areas,” Katherine E. Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, which operates the museum, said in a statement. earlier this week. “Fortunately, Getty has made considerable efforts to clear the surrounding area as part of its year-round fire mitigation efforts.”

This article was originally published on USATNetwork: Los Angeles wildfires spread to Brentwood, including the Getty Center