LA fire toll rises, ahead of days of fresh risk

The death toll from the Los Angeles fires has jumped to 24, as firefighters race to get ahead of two blazes before high winds are expected to fan the flames anew.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner said late on Sunday (local time) that eight deaths were from the Palisades fire and 16 from the Eaton fire in Altadena.

Only two of the victims have been officially identified – 66-year-old Victor Shaw, who died from smoke inhalation and thermal injuries at his Altadena home, and 84-year-old Charles Mortimer, of Pacific Palisades, who died in a hospital from a heart attack, smoke inhalation and thermal injuries.

It is not known if the latest toll includes Australian man Rory Sykes, 32. His mother, Shelley Sykes, has said he was killed at their Malibu home.

Dozens more people remain missing in what California Governor Gavin Newsom said could be the most devastating natural disaster in US history, one that has destroyed thousands of homes and forced 100,000 people to evacuate.

Flames have reduced whole neighbourhoods to smouldering ruins, levelling the homes of the rich and famous and ordinary folk alike, and leaving an apocalyptic landscape.

Officials said 12,000 structures have been damaged or destroyed.

“LA County had another night of unimaginable terror and heartbreak,” Los Angeles County supervisor Lindsey Horvath said on Sunday.

Aerial firefighters, some of them scooping water out of the Pacific Ocean, dropped water and retardant while land crews with hand tools and hoses held the line of the Palisades Fire as it encroached on the upscale Brentwood section and other populated areas of Los Angeles.

The fire on the western side of town has consumed 9596 hectares or 96 square kilometres and is considered 11 per cent contained, a figure representing the percentage of the fire’s perimeter that firefighters have under control.

The Eaton Fire in the foothills east of Los Angeles scorched another 5713 hectares – itself nearly the size of Manhattan. Firefighters increased the containment to 27 per cent, up from 15 per cent a day earlier.

North of the city, the Hurst Fire was 89 per cent contained, and three other fires that had ravaged other parts of the county were now 100 per cent contained, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) reported, though areas within the containment lines may still be burning.

Firefighters got a temporary break from the weather at the weekend as Santa Ana winds, which reached hurricane force earlier in the week, finally eased.

The dry winds originating from the inland deserts had fanned flames and blew embers up to three kilometres ahead of the front lines.

But, in an area that has not received any rain of note since April, the National Weather Service forecast Santa Ana winds of 80-112km/h would resume on Sunday night and last until Wednesday.

Officials warned the entire Los Angeles County population of nearly 10 million that anyone may be ordered to evacuate.

By Sunday, more than 100,000 people in Los Angeles County had been told to evacuate – down from a previous high of more than 150,000. Another 87,000 faced evacuation warnings.

“These winds combined with low relative humidities and low fuel moistures will keep the fire threat in all of Los Angeles County very high,” Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said, adding that evacuated areas may not be reopened until “red flag” conditions are lifted on Thursday.

“This is a priority for the unified incident command. Not only for the Palisades fire but also the Eaton fire. Unfortunately, those conversations are not going to begin until the next predicted red flag ends on Wednesday.”

Private forecaster AccuWeather has estimated the damage and economic loss from the devastating fires at $US135 billion ($A220 billion) to $US150 billion ($A244 billion).

To help expedite the monumental rebuilding effort ahead, Newsom signed an executive order on Sunday temporarily suspending environmental regulations for destroyed homes and businesses.

Active duty military personnel are standing by ready to support the firefighting effort, and firefighters from seven states, Canada and Mexico have already converged on the Los Angeles area to help fire departments from around the state.

– with AAP