California was buffeted Wednesday by strong winds fueling a fast-moving wildfire that destroyed dozens of homes and forced thousands of residents to flee as forecasters warned of the potential for “extreme and life-threatening” fires.

The Mountain Fire has raged northwest of Los Angeles, prompting evacuation orders for more than 10,000 people as it threatens 3,500 structures in suburban communities, farms and agricultural areas around Camarillo, according to Governor Gavin Newsom. The area east of the Pacific coast city of Ventura will receive federal aid after Newsom’s request is granted, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday.

The fire was burning in an area that has seen some of California’s most destructive fires in years. A thick cloud of smoke rose hundreds of meters into the sky on Wednesday, covering entire neighborhoods and restricting visibility for firefighters and evacuees. The fire grew from half a square mile to 16 square miles in just over five hours.

Ventura County Fire Captain Trevor Johnson said that crews rushed towards houses in danger of fire with their engines to save lives.

“This is as intense as it gets. “I’m sure the hair on the firefighters’ neck stood up,” he said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

At one point flames licked through the remains of a burned house. Its roof was just a few charred tiles.

Fire officials said two people were affected by smoke and were taken to the hospital. No firefighters reported serious injuries.

Weather meteorologist Bryan Lewis said erratic winds and limited visibility grounded fixed-wing aircraft and gusts exceeded 60 mph. Water-dropping helicopters were still flying.

First responders called for citizens to evacuate. MPs contacted 14,000 people and urged them to leave as embers spread up to 4 kilometers away, creating new flames.

“The fire is moving dangerously fast,” Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said.

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Aerial footage from local television networks showed dozens of homes in flames in many neighborhoods as embers flew from house to house. Other images show horses running alongside evacuation vehicles.

Jade Katz, who said she was disabled and did not drive, waited for a friend to pick her up near her Camarillo Heights home with a bag of medications and her Great Dane service dog, Bella. But when his friend couldn’t reach him, first responders sent a squad car to escort him Wednesday afternoon as the helicopter dropped water on the house across the street from his home.

“When we left the neighborhood, five or eight houses were already burned,” said Katz, 35, who was sitting in the car with roommate Shannon Kelly, 28. My friend in Los Angeles.

Authorities said they used all resources, including helicopters dropping water and fixed-wing aircraft dropping fire retardant, but it was still out of control as of Wednesday afternoon. Ventura County fire spokesman Andrew Dowd said he did not have details on how many structures were damaged.

Gus Garcia, who owns a ranch south of the fire, said he is waiting to see if conditions change before deciding whether to evacuate his horses and cattle. At around 12:30 p.m., his animals were still safe and he was trying to get out of the way while others were taking their animals out.

His farm is surrounded by horses and alpacas, among others, and Garcia said his neighbors in the canyon didn’t seem alarmed.

“The horse community is preparing for this because it is always a possibility here,” he said.

Meanwhile, to the south, Los Angeles County Fire Department crews scrambled to contain a wildfire near Malibu’s Broad Beach as authorities briefly closed the Pacific Coast Highway as flames burned near multimillion-dollar properties. Residents were asked to shelter in place as planes dropped water on the 50-acre Large Fire area. By around 12:30 p.m., 15% was contained and forward progress was halted. Fire officials said two structures burned.

The Los Angeles-area National Weather Service office replaced a red flag warning of increased fire danger with a rare “especially hazardous condition” label, and officials in several counties urged residents to remain alert for fast-spreading fires, power outages and falls. trees in the middle of the last round of the infamous Santa Ana winds.

With winds predicted between 50 mph and 160 mph and humidity levels as low as 8%, parts of Southern California could experience conditions ripe for “extreme and life-threatening” fire behavior by Thursday, the weather service said.

Forecasters also issued red flag warnings through Thursday from California’s central coast to the San Francisco Bay Area and counties to the north where strong winds are expected.

Utilities in California have begun shutting down power to equipment during high winds and extreme fire danger following a series of large and deadly wildfires sparked by power lines and other infrastructure in recent years. On Wednesday, more than 65,000 customers in Southern California and more than 20,000 customers in Northern California were without power.

Wednesday’s fires were burning in the same areas as other recent devastating fires, including the 2018 Woolsey Fire near Los Angeles, which killed three people and destroyed 1,600 homes, and the 2017 Thomas Fire, which destroyed more than a thousand homes and other structures near Los Angeles. Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Southern California Edison paid tens of millions of dollars to settle claims after its equipment was blamed for both fires.