Most expensive mansion burns down in Los Angeles

Wildfires sweeping through Los Angeles areas have destroyed one of the most expensive mansions in the US, located in Pacific Palisades. The mansion, valued at $125m, was completely gutted, reduced to a pile of ash and charred structures. This is reported by Daily Mail.

The once-luxurious home belonged to 29-year-old billionaire Austin Russell, founder of Luminar Technologies, who purchased it for $83m in 2021. The house, previously known as the filming location for the HBO series "Succession", was listed for rent at $450,000 a month. However, now only ruins remain of the building, which featured 18 bedrooms and a chef's kitchen.

The fire has destroyed tens of thousands of buildings and has already claimed the lives of at least 16 people. The blaze has been contained by only 8%, and five major fire fronts continue to rage in the vicinity of Malibu and Pacific Palisades. One of them, named the "Archer Fire", broke out in Los Angeles County on 10 January.

Austin Russell's home, which earned him the nickname "mysterious crypto-billionaire" in his youth, has become one of the symbols of the destruction. The Luminar Technologies founder started his career at 17, dropping out of Stanford to focus on developing technology for self-driving cars. By the age of 25, he had become a billionaire after taking his company public.

Previously, this futuristic mansion with a retractable roof, wine cellar, pool and 20-seat theatre impressed with its design. Now, its famous interiors and terraces are destroyed, and the garden with a modern pool has turned into charred ruins filled with murky water.

Despite the efforts of firefighters, the fires in this area continue to pose a threat, exacerbating the consequences of the disaster for the entire community.