This is like something straight out an apocalypse.

These terrifying scenes were captured on camera by a man as he fled his home in Anderson Springs in Northern California on Saturday evening as a ferocious wildfire, now dubbed the 'Valley fire' and 'the worst tragedy Lake County has ever seen", closed in.

The unnamed driver admitted to KTLA that he "did wait way too long to get out", but said that he wasn't aware how close the wildfire actually was because there was no smoke or ash near them at the time, adding:

"We are the last house at the very back of the Springs, down in a gulch," he continued. "There was no smoke or ash coming our way, and there were no sirens or air support nearby, so we honestly didn't know how close (the fire) was."

He said there were no firefighters in the area at the time and speculated that was because fire agencies did not have enough resources to deploy there.

"In retrospect, we should have gone out for a drive to find out what was going on, but we were a little preoccupied with packing," the resident added.

The Valley fire can be seen burning through trees, cars, vans and buildings on both sides of the camera as the car escapes along the road.

So far the fire has claimed the life of one person, injured four and destroyed 400 homes. A terrifying reminder of the power of nature.

Via YouTube/KTLA