Residents of Altadena’s beloved Christmas Tree Lane held their breath Wednesday as the swiftly growing Eaton fire tore through the area, threatening homes in a neighborhood that hosts one of the region’s longest-running holiday traditions.

Charles Jones, 22, along with three family members and two dogs, evacuated from their Altadena home on Wednesday morning.

“I’ve never been around any sort of natural disaster, so this is kind of crazy,” said the college student. The family came back to the house on Wednesday morning to retrieve a few items before heading back to a hotel.

Several homes in the area have burned, but the neighborhood’s famous trees, decorated each year for the holidays, did not appear to be ablaze at mid-day.

The holiday tradition, one of the most celebrated in Los Angeles County, includes festively lighted homes and towering Deodars, trees from Italy planted in 1883 by Altadena founder John P. Woodbury.

The seasonal activity dates back to 1920, when Altadena resident and department store owner Frederick C. Nash organized the first tree-lighting with the goal of attracting shoppers to his store.

Listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated as the California State Landmark No. 990, the lane was originally known as the “Mile of Christmas Trees,” organizers said, highlighting the 10,000 lights and hours of volunteer service it takes to create the display.

On Wednesday, many homes along and around E. Calaveras Street in Altadena were burned down to the ground.

For some properties, only chimneys and charred skeletons of cars remain. Downed trees, branches, small spot fires and power lines litter the streets.

An electrical pole on Calaveras near Fair Oaks Avenue was also burning late Wednesday.

Colleen and Butch Carlson were quickly packing up their belongings into their car as firefighters worked to put out the flamed that had engulfed their Christmas Tree Lane home.

“We can’t stop it,” said Colleen.

Just a few blocks away, Pasadena councilmember Rick Cole and two of his children were throwing buckets of water and shovels of dirt up along burning trees on the Altadena Library property in an effort to save the building.

Cole described the library as the “jewel of Altadena.”

Just next door to the library, the Altadena Senior Center was up in flames.

Few residents lingered on the iconic street to assess the damage to their homes and retrieve additional items, including artist Sterling Dimitrius.

Along with his wife, son, and dog, he evacuated from his home on Tuesday afternoon. Dimitrius returned to the neighborhood on Wednesday morning to retrieve more belongings.

“It was pretty shocking coming up seeing houses on fire so close to our own home.”