From the infamous Camp Fire of 2018, which obliterated a staggering 18,804 structures, to the recent Palisades Fire of January 2025, the state is no stranger to catastrophic destruction.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Any fire needs oxygen to grow and the wildfires in the Los Angeles area are no exception. The fires have destroyed more than 10,000 homes and killed at least 10 people, in part because of the powerful Santa Ana winds. One firefighter described it as like fighting a fire in a hurricane.

The hurricane-force winds fueling fast-moving Southern California wildfires have exasperated firefighters in western states for over a century. They quickly turn small wildfires into raging infernos and eviscerate everything in their paths.

We explain what’s known about how the catastrophic L.A. wildfires started and the factors that scientists do -- and don’t -- think contributed.

The Los Angeles fires are a soul-crushing and city-defining disaster. Callous voices have called it a city-destroying event, but they don’t know Los Angeles very well.

In recent days, however, the region’s powerful Santa Ana winds—which have been fanning the flames—have begun to slow down. This lull has offered firefighters a reprieve and a key opportunity to make progress against the blazes, but forecasts suggest the Santa Ana will return next week. What are these gusts, and how have they become so strong?

Even as four wildfires continued to burn in Los Angeles County Wednesday, the blazes were already rewriting the record books.

Fanned by strong winds, the wildfires have killed at least 24 people and swept through 40,000 acres in the Greater Los Angeles area.

San Diego County has in the past dealt with its own massive and destructive fires. How do they compare to the recent blazes in Los Angeles?

Gusty Santa Ana winds are forecast to come and go over southern California in the next several days, at times further exacerbating the deadly and devastating wildfires across the region.

The Santa Ana winds fanning wildfires that have killed at least 25 people in Southern California and destroyed more than 10,000 houses, businesses and other structures in Greater Los Angeles are flaring up again.

"The wildfires ... California vividly illustrates the escalating challenges of wildfire management in such vulnerable zones," Saleh said. "The Palisades Fire, fueled by a combination of strong ...