Rory Sykes, former child star, killed in California wildfires, mom reports
Shelley Sykes, left, with son Rory Sykes, right. (Credit: @shelleysykes via X)
MALIBU, Calif. - Rory Sykes, an Australian former child actor, died in the Palisades Fire on Wednesday, after his mom said his Malibu home burned to the ground.
"It is with great sadness that I have to announce the death of my beautiful son [Rory Sykes] to the Malibu fires yesterday," his mother Shelley Sykes wrote on X earlier this week. According to his mom, Rory Sykes was 32 years old.
Rory Sykes was born blind and with cerebral palsy, making it difficult for him to walk, his mom said. She said her son was killed after the cottage he was living in on their Malibu estate caught on fire Wednesday. Shelley Sykes said she tried to put out the embers on the building's roof herself.
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She also claimed that firefighters in her area were unable to access water as they were trying to fight the fire in the area.
According to Los Angeles County officials, at least five people have died in the Palisades fire, though it was not clear whether Sykes was included in that number.
The Palisades Fire sparked around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 7, in the Pacific Palisades, and has since burned more than 20,000 acres across Los Angeles and Malibu and destroyed thousands of structures. The fire is 11% contained as of Saturday.