Meryl Streep Cut a 'Car-Size Hole in the Fence' for a Harrowing Getaway During L.A. Wildfires

Meryl Streep's nephew is sharing a nerve-wracking tale of how the celebrated actress escaped the wildfires in Los Angeles.

Streep, 75, was forced to cut a large enough hole in her fence to drive a car through while she evacuated her home on Jan. 8, one day after multiple wildfires began raging throughout L.A., as her nephew Abe Streep wrote in a New York Magazine article detailing the fires' destruction.

"Evacuation mandates were sent across the city. My aunt Meryl Streep received an order to evacuate on January 8, but when she tried to leave, she discovered that a large tree had fallen over in her driveway, blocking her only exit," the Brothers on Three: A True Story of Family author wrote. "Determined to make it out, she borrowed wire cutters from a neighbor, cut a car-size hole in the fence she shared with the neighbors on the other side, and drove through their yard to escape."

Meryl's nephew Abe also spoke with her longtime friend and Only Murders in the Building costar Martin Short, as well as actor Haley Joel Osment, as he detailed the disastrous fires that swept through L.A.'s Pacific Palisades and Altadena communities earlier this month, displacing tens of thousands of residents.

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Short, 74, lives in Pacific Palisades; he told the outlet that he took family photo albums with him when one of his two sons told him to evacuate after the fires began on Jan. 7. It took Short more than an hour to exit the Pacific Palisades as some people abandoned their vehicles and walked away from danger. Osment, meanwhile, said he had recently returned from filming a new movie when the Eaton Fire began nearby his home in Altadena.

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Osment lost 500 records he owned and a piano his parents had gifted him for his 18th birthday. The actor told New York Magazine that his father was struggling with the loss of his own home as well. "Not to cast blame or anything, but I just want to know, when this is all investigated — was there a decision to just let the whole neighborhood go?” Osment said.

Related: How Could This Happen? Answering Frequently Asked Questions About the L.A. Wildfire Disaster

Authorities said on Monday, Jan. 28. that the death toll from the fires had risen to 29 in recent days. Short additionally told New York magazine that his home had survived the flames in the Pacific Palisades, but one of his sons lost his nearby house. Osment intends to rebuild his home in Altadena. "I will definitely stay in my home," Short said. 

Click here to learn more about how to help the victims of the L.A. fires.

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