Evacuation orders for the entire Los Angeles area cover 153,000 people, with 57,000 homes at risk.
Firefighters are racing to contain the spread of wildfires in Los Angeles before strong winds return, as new evacuation warnings have left many homeowners stranded.
A major effort was underway Saturday in Los Angeles' upscale Pacific Palisades neighborhood, after wildfires spread to other areas overnight.
Residents have been warned of worsening weather conditions in the coming days that could reignite the blaze.
Cal Fire Chief Todd Hopkins told reporters at a press conference that the Palisades Fire has spread into the Mandeville Canyon area and is threatening to jump into Brentwood, a developed area.
Cal Fire Operations Chief Christian Litz said the main focus Saturday will be the Palisades Fire burning in the canyon area, not far from UCLA's campus.
“We have to be aggressive out there,” Litz said.
Currently, evacuation orders across the Los Angeles area now affect 153,000 people, with 57,000 homes at risk.
Another 166,000 people have been warned to evacuate, said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna.
Luna added that his agency has sent 40 search and rescue personnel to work with other agencies, including using cadaver dogs to search for the remains of victims and help reunite separated families.
At least 11 people have been killed
The six wildfires that have ravaged parts of Los Angeles County since Tuesday have killed at least 11 people and damaged or destroyed 10,000 homes — a term that includes homes, apartments, businesses, outbuildings and vehicles.
At least 13 people are still missing. The death toll is expected to rise as firefighters search house-to-house.
Santa Ana's dangerous winds that caused infernos descended on Friday night. But the Palisades Fire west of the city was moving in a new direction as winds blew in from the Pacific Ocean and threatened the densely populated San Fernando Valley.
The fire, which is the most destructive in the history of Los Angeles, has burned entire neighborhoods, leaving only the ruins of homes and property.
Before the latest incident, firefighters said they were making progress on the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire in the foothills east of the city after burning for days.
As of Saturday, the Palisades Fire was 11 percent contained and the East Eaton Fire was 15 percent contained, the state Cal Fire agency said.
The two large fires combined for more than 36,000 acres (14,500 hectares), or 145.6 square kilometers – 2.5 times the area of Manhattan.
Seven neighboring states, the federal government and Canada rushed to help California, with aerial teams dropping water and fire extinguishers on the burning mountains and ground crews attacking fire lines with hand tools and hoses.
Winds were forecast to slow
The National Weather Service said conditions in the Los Angeles area could improve over the weekend, with sustained winds slowing to around 20mph (32km/h), with gusts between 35mph and 50mph (56-80-km/h). .
“It's not very hot, so that should help the firefighters,” NWS meteorologist Allison Santorelli said, adding that conditions were still difficult due to low humidity and dry vegetation.
Officials have declared a public emergency due to the thick and toxic fumes.
Independent forecaster AccuWeather estimated damages and losses were $135bn to $150bn, reflecting a difficult recovery and higher homeowner's insurance costs.
President Joe Biden has declared the fire a major disaster and said the US government will reimburse 100 percent of the recovery over the next six months.