At least two more people have died in California's devastating firestorm, taking the death toll to seven, as several blazes continue to burn out of control in Los Angeles.
The two largest blazes — the "Palisades fire" in the seaside neighbourhoods between Malibu and Santa Monica, and the "Eaton fire" around Pasadena and Altadena — were still mostly uncontained on Thursday, local time.
On Thursday morning, the Eaton fire's spread had been "significantly stopped", LA County fire chief Anthony Marrone said. But in an afternoon update, he said it had grown and was "making a run towards the historic Mount Wilson area".
Almost 180,000 residents were ordered to leave their homes. Evacuation orders for the Hollywood Hills were lifted on Thursday morning.
But new fires have since prompted more evacuations, including the "Kenneth fire", which quickly burned through more than 300 hectares in the Calabasas and Hidden Hills areas, west of the Hollywood Hills.
[datawrapper map]"The fires keep coming," LA Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley said. "I've never seen this in my 25-year career."
On Wednesday, authorities reported five deaths, all linked to the Eaton fire. On Thursday afternoon, they confirmed two more deaths linked to the Palisades fire. There are fears the death toll will rise further as fire-devastated areas are searched.
"At one point, we'll be able to do a more thorough search of these impacted areas — some of them look like a bomb was dropped in them — where we will be able to bring in canines and other things to help us, hopefully, not discover too many fatalities," LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said.
"That's our prayer. But this is a crisis, and we don't know what to expect."
Between 4,000 and 5,000 buildings and vehicles are believed to have burned in the Eaton fire. Chief Crowley said the number of properties damaged or destroyed by the Palisades fire was "in the thousands".
"It is safe to say that the Palisades fire is one of the most destructive natural disasters in the history of Los Angeles," she said.
The fires could also be the costliest in US history, according to analysts. JPMorgan analyst Jimmy Bhullar estimated the total economic loss at close to $US50 billion ($80 billion), the Wall Street Journal reported.
Thick smoke continues to blanket the city, making it difficult to breathe in affected areas.
Winds died down on Thursday, giving authorities hope they could begin to contain the blazes. The National Weather Service warned high winds on Friday would create an "increased risk of rapid fire spread and extreme fire behaviour".
Officials said the forward progress of the forward progress of the Kenneth fire was stopped on Thursday evening, with 400 firefighters remaining on the scene throughout the night to monitor the fire.
Evacuation orders were lifted in the region near the Hurst fire, with residents allowed to return to their homes as authorities began to contain the fire.
Returning water to dry hydrants
The cause of the fires remains unknown. But extreme winds and tinder-dry conditions helped fuel them, and dry fire hydrants in some areas created difficulties fighting them.
President Joe Biden said wildfire agency Cal Fire had cut power to prevent more fires being started by downed power lines. But that had stopped water pumps supplying hydrants, he said.
"Cal Fire is bringing in generators to get these pumps up and working again, so that there's no longer a shortage of water coming out of these hydrants," Mr Biden said.
He said another 400 federal firefighters and 30 firefighting aircraft would be deployed, and more resources were coming from Canada.
The federal government will fund the recovery for 180 days, he said.
Some residents are nervous that incoming president Donald Trump, a critic of the state's Democratic leaders, could reverse that decision. Mr Biden said he would "pray to god" that he did not.
"I think Trump would leave us swinging in the wind," resident Cindy Sullivan told the ABC in Altadena. "He's already expressed that this is our Governor [Gavin] Newsom's fault, and … that California creates its own problems."
Sacha Strebe, an Australian now living in Altadena with her family, lost her home in the Eaton fire. She said many LA residents were angry at the city's lack of preparedness.
"We pay the highest taxes of many of the states in America, so to not see those taxes be put towards things that are prevention measures, to make sure that our houses don't burn down in the way that they have so quickly, is really disappointing," she told the ABC.
"I think it will get ugly. It will get very political, as it already has.
"And I don't know if pointing fingers and blaming is the right thing to do, but there's so many people that are just devastated right now."
Looters 'targeting vulnerable communities'
Authorities say they are now working to protect evacuated neighbourhoods from burglars, after 20 people were arrested for looting and related crimes.
Sheriff Luna said he was instructing officers to start enforcing evacuation orders to prevent more opportunistic theft.
"If you are in one of these areas and you do not belong there, you are going to be subject to arrest," Sheriff Luna said. Later, he said an evening curfew would also be introduced in heavily affected areas.
LA County Board of Supervisors chair Kathryn Barger said: "We've all seen individuals who are targeting vulnerable communities by burglarising and looting homes.
"Shame on those who are preying on our residents during this time of crisis."
The neighbourhoods affected by the fires span socio-economic demographics but include some of the most valuable real estate in America. Some of the biggest names in show business own property in the area.
Adam Brody, Billy Crystal, Ricki Lake and Eugene Levy are among the celebrities who have reported losing property in the fires.
Paris Hilton said her beach house had been levelled. "Sitting with family, watching the news and seeing our home in Malibu burn to the ground on live TV is something no one should ever have to experience," she posted to social media.
In some areas, residents have been able to return to their razed homes to survey the damage. Some told the ABC they were shocked fire had managed to reach their properties, despite the evacuation orders.
"We never imagined, when I evacuated, that we would need to take more stuff with us," said Marjie Blake, whose beachside mobile home in a park near the Palisades was turned to ash.
"We could have taken more, we just never imagined it [the fire] would get this far, ever."
Their neighbour, who lost a Jaguar convertible and a Porsche along with his newly built home, said fire crews did not have water to protect the properties in the park.
"You always assumed the fire department was going to step in and there was going to be no problem, but unfortunately when they got to us, they had no water," he told the ABC.
"So they pretty much walked in, told a couple of guys to get the hell out, and turned around and left because there wasn't any water for them."
