"The fire is growing with a moderate rate of spread and structures are threatened," Cal Fire said as it issued evacuation orders.

A wind-driven wildfire charred dozens of acres in a sparsely developed area south of Pala Mesa on Tuesday, damaging structures and forcing pre-dawn evacuations before crews could gain the upper hand on the flames.

Fire danger persists with Santa Ana winds in the forecast Wednesday into Thursday as firefighters work to contain the Palisades, Eaton, Lilac, and Clay Fires in Southern California. However, there is some hope on the way in the form of raindrops and a wind shift this weekend.

Several counties in Southern California faced "critical" fire risks this week, according to an AccuWeather forecast.

The Lilac fire was reported around 12:45 a.m. and by 5 a.m. had charred 80+ acres west of I-15 south of SR-76. Forward progress stopped around 10 a.m. It was one of three fires in North County

A rare Particularly Dangerous Situation warning has been issued for Southern California as a powerful and potentially damaging Santa Ana wind event​ is expected.

Thousands of firefighters have been battling wildfires across 45 square miles of densely populated Los Angeles County. The two largest fires, the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades and the Eaton Fire near Pasadena, remain active. One of the latest, the Hughes Fire in the Castaic area, has prompted evacuation orders for tens of thousands of people.

Santa Ana winds continue to blow through Los Angeles area Thursday, enabling wildfires and challenging firefighting efforts.

The Palisades and Eaton wildfires continue burning in the Los Angeles area, leaving parts of Southern California with devastating fire damage.

The bushfire started northwest of Downtown Los Angeles and spread from Los Angeles County to Ventura County and prompted evacuations.

Continued strong winds and dry conditions on Wednesday morning rapidly spread a fire near Castaic Lake in northern Los Angeles County and has burned through 8,096 acres.