Firefighters continue to fight Raging wildfires Sixteen people have died in the Los Angeles, California, area, and forecasters again warned this week that strong winds would return, bringing dangerous weather.

Although the Santa Ana winds that fueled the fires died down over the weekend, the National Weather Service (NWS) warned that stronger gusts of up to 110 km/h (70 mph) could return early next week.

Local officials said the strongest winds were expected on Tuesday. The National Weather Service said a red flag warning remains in place through Wednesday for Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The situation is expected to ease by Thursday.

Aircrafts sprayed water and retardant on steep hillsides on Sunday to stop a fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood from spreading eastward. TV station KTLA reported that ground crews were able to save some homes, but others were burned.

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

Six simultaneous fires have broken out in America’s second-largest city since Tuesday, Caused at least 16 deaths.

Five people died in the Palisades Fire and 11 died in the Eaton Fire, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office said in a statement late Saturday.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Sunday morning that 12 people were missing from the Eaton Fire District and four people were missing from the Palisades Fire District.

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

“I’ve sent out search and rescue teams. We’ve rescued cadaver dogs and there may be more,” he told NBC News.

Newsom said the fires could be the worst natural disaster in U.S. history in terms of “size and scope” and associated costs.

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Dean Criswell said in a series of television interviews on Sunday that active-duty military personnel were ready to support firefighting efforts, adding that the agency had urged residents to start applying for disaster relief.

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

Fire officials said the fires have damaged or destroyed 12,000 buildings and entire neighborhoods have been destroyed by the blazes smoldering ruins And left behind an apocalyptic landscape.

Late Saturday, officials reported that the Palisades Fire had grown by an additional 1,000 acres (400 hectares) in the past 24 hours, destroying more homes.

Cal Fire official Todd Hopkins said that while 11% of the Palisades Fire is now contained, it has burned more than 22,000 acres (8,900 hectares).

Hopkins told reporters the fire has spread into Mandeville Canyon and could spread into the upscale communities of Brentwood and the San Fernando Valley. It was also moving slowly toward the north-south 405 Freeway.

Al Jazeera’s Phil Lavelle, reporting from a helicopter over Los Angeles, said the scale of the damage was enormous.

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

“One minute they’re heading to places like Brentwood. The other is heading to 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 were warned they may have to evacuate.

Trump lashes out at local officials

U.S. President Joe Biden held calls with officials to get an update on their efforts and was briefed by aides on federal resources being dispatched.

He declared a major disaster, bringing federal aid to people affected by wildfires and clearing the way for support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

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

Newsom also signed an executive order to reduce the red tape needed for the state to rebuild damaged homes and businesses.

However, US President-elect Donald Trump criticized local and state officials for what he said was a poor handling of the situation.

“The fires in Los Angeles are still raging. Incompetent (politicians) don’t know how to put them out. Thousands of magnificent homes are gone, and many more will be gone soon. Death is everywhere… they are Can’t put out the fire? What’s wrong with them?” he said on his Truth social media.

Los Angeles Board of Supervisors President Kathryn Barger told reporters she had invited Trump, who took office on Jan. 20, to visit the county to see the damage firsthand.