Firefighters continue their fight Raging forest fires The storm claimed the lives of 16 people in the Los Angeles area of ​​California, while meteorologists again warned of dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week.

Although the Santa Ana winds that fanned the fires subsided over the weekend, the US National Weather Service (NWS) warned that stronger wind gusts of up to 110 kilometers per hour (70 mph) could return early next week.

Local officials said they expect the strongest winds to blow on Tuesday. Red flag warnings remain in effect in Los Angeles and Ventura counties through Wednesday, the Weather Service said.

Conditions are expected to improve by Thursday.

On Sunday, planes dropped water and fire retardant on steep hills to stop the fire spreading eastward in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, and KTLA-TV reported that ground crews were able to save a number of homes, although others were lost.

“Los Angeles County witnessed another night of unimaginable horror and heartbreak,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said.

Six simultaneous fires have broken out in the second largest US city since Tuesday. Killing at least 16 people.

Five of the deaths were caused by the Palisades Fire and 11 were caused by the Eaton Fire, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office said in a statement Saturday evening.

Twelve people were missing within the area of ​​the Eaton Fire and four from the Palisades Fire, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Sunday morning.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said he expected the death toll to rise.

“We’ve brought out search and rescue teams. We’ve brought out cadaver dogs and there will likely be more,” he told NBC News.

Newsom said the fires are likely to be the worst natural disaster in U.S. history in terms of “size and scope” as well as the costs associated with them.

Active-duty military personnel are ready to support firefighting efforts, Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deane Criswell said in a series of television interviews on Sunday, adding that the agency urged residents to begin submitting requests for disaster relief.

“We have the funding to support this response, to support this recovery,” she told ABC News.

Fire officials said the fires damaged or destroyed 12,000 buildings, with the flames turning entire neighborhoods into rubble. Burning ruins It left horrific landscapes.

The Palisades Fire has spread an additional 1,000 acres (400 hectares) in the past 24 hours, consuming more homes, officials reported Saturday evening.

Although the Palisades Fire is 11 percent contained, it has burned more than 22,000 acres (8,900 hectares), Cal Fire Fire Marshal Todd Hopkins said.

Hopkins told reporters that the fire had spread to Mandeville Canyon and threatened to move into the upscale Brentwood neighborhood and the San Fernando Valley. It also heads towards the 405 North-South Freeway.

Al Jazeera’s Phil Lavelle said from a helicopter over Los Angeles that the scale of the devastation was enormous.

“What you get from here is a sense of how much danger still lies ahead, because the flames from the Palisades Fire are moving toward densely populated areas, and their direction can change in a second,” he said.

“One minute, they’re heading toward places like Brentwood. Others are heading toward the densely populated San Fernando Valley where millions of people live.

Evacuation orders across the Los Angeles area now cover 153,000 residents. Sheriff Luna said another 166,000 residents have been warned they may have to evacuate.

Trump criticizes local officials

US President Joe Biden spoke by phone with officials to get an update on their efforts and his aides briefed him on the federal resources that have been sent.

His declaration of a major disaster opened the door to federal assistance to those affected by wildfires, paving the way for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide support.

Support can range from funding home repairs to money to replace lost food or medicine, said Michael Hart, a spokesman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, adding that assistance can be provided within days.

Newsom also signed an executive order to reduce the amount of red tape needed to rebuild lost homes and businesses.

However, US President-elect Donald Trump criticized local and international officials who he believed handled the situation poorly.

“The fires are still burning in Los Angeles. Incompetent people [politicians] I have no idea how to put it down. Thousands of wonderful homes have disappeared, and many more will be lost soon. There is death everywhere… They can’t put out the fires. What’s wrong with them? On his social media feed, he told the truth.

Los Angeles Board of Supervisors Chair Katherine Barger told reporters that she invited Trump – who takes office on January 20 – to visit the county to get a first-hand look at the devastation.