Sources close to Dick Van Dyke have revealed the impact the terrifying Los Angeles wildfires have had on the veteran star.
The actor, 99, had to be evacuated from his home last month after wildfires threatened the area where he lives in Malibu.
Many parts of Los Angeles have seen mass destruction as wildfires have raged, with high winds and dry weather having exacerbated the areas of devastation.
Van Dyke was among the thousands that had to be evacuated as the blaze neared his Malibu mansion in December, and friends say he has had a “post-traumatic” response to the current crisis.
When the fires first began in Malibu on December 10, the Mary Poppins star attempted to combat the blaze himself along with his wife, Arlene Silver, 53.
However, their attempts at tackling the blaze were hampered when they struggled with a tangled fire hose.
Van Dyke told Radar Online: “What I did was exhaust myself. I forgot how old I am, and I realized I was crawling to get out.”
He revealed that he’d struggled to reach his car as he attempted to save his treasured belongings, but was too “exhausted” to be able to get up from the floor.
Three neighbors thankfully stepped in to help him and get him evacuated, while also tackling the flames themselves.
He explained: “I was trying to crawl to the car. I had exhausted myself. I couldn’t get up. And three neighbors came and carried me out and came back and put out a little fire in the guest house and saved me.”
Van Dyke celebrated his 99th birthday just days later, but insiders have said the star has been left “shaken up” by the ordeal.
The Emmy Award-winning star celebrated his 99th birthday with an intimate family dinner arranged by his wife Arlene, whom he married in 2012.
The Daily Star reports that the actor is now focused on reaching his milestone 100th birthday, but the trauma of having to be evacuated has left its mark.
An insider claimed: “Physically, Dick was fine but he is still shaken up; there is some post-traumatic stress coming from it.
“In a way, it was hard for him to face that at his age, he just can’t take on battling a fire, and his neighbors had to rescue him.
“Dick has made it his goal to see his 100th birthday, but it saddens him that more and more, he has to rely on others’ care.
“The hope is that once things calm down, he’ll be strong enough to savor what time he has left!”
And despite his advancing age, Van Dyke has not slowed down completely when it comes to work, as last month it was reported that he was “in talks” with a major movie studio and is hoping to “get to work” over the coming year.
Speaking to NBCLA, he said: “I’d like to get a job… I can play somebody’s grandfather on a sitcom or something, just to keep busy. And I’m not expensive,” to which his wife joked: “Yes, you are!”
