Photo gallery: Aerial photos show the scope of destruction from the Pacific Palisades wildfire

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Street after street, there is little but dark ash and ruin where a wealthy seaside enclave favored by celebrities once stood. Blackened trees stand out amid the rubble, and the occasional mansion remains, suddenly exposed to view from all sides.

Photos that an Associated Press photographer took from a helicopter on Thursday show the extent of the devastation from most destructive wildfire in Los Angeles history. The fire, one of several in the area that left at least five people dead this week, leveled much of Pacific Palisades, a community that had long served as a backdrop in films and TV shows.

Smoke continues to rise from the charred skeletons of beachfront properties, as the white foam of the surf washes up on the sand just feet away. On some lots, only the chimneys were left standing.

The Palisades was envisioned a century ago as a religious commune. Its beauty and proximity to nature — a long stretch of Pacific beach, craggy bluffs and deep, verdant canyons — and downtown Los Angeles made it highly desirable. The median home listing price there was $4.6 million, with one eight-bedroom estate priced at nearly $40 million, according to the website Realtor.com.

It has been utterly transformed. Among the destroyed properties were homes belonging to Billy Crystal, Jeff Bridges, Paris Hilton and R&B star Jhené Aiko. Among the landmarks that were damaged or ruined were Palisades Charter High School, which appeared in films including "Carrie" and a remake of "Freaky Friday," the ranch of Hollywood legend Will Rogers, and the Reel Inn Malibu, a seafood shack whose fans include Cindy Crawford and Jerry Seinfeld, among others.