Tens of thousands have fled their homes as a brush fire in the Pacific Palisades has burned more than 17,000 acres as of Wednesday. Earlier, authorities had said the blaze could grow further with strong winds fueling its spread.

Forecasters warned Southern California could see a “life-threatening, destructive” windstorm this week, as powerful gusts and dropped humidity levels raise the risk for wildfires in parched areas still recovering from a recent destructive blaze.

Thousands of people have fled their homes as a brush fire in the Pacific Palisades has grown to more than 17,000 acres Wednesday.

As a major winter storm batters the Midwest and East Coast, the National Weather Service is warning a destructive windstorm could hit Southern California.

A windstorm is threatening to spread a brush fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in southern California and could trigger more fires as evacuations are underway.

Firefighters scrambled to corral a fast-moving wildfire in the Los Angeles hillsides as a windstorm hit Southern California on Tuesday.

Wildfires began breaking out in Southern California Tuesday morning as a life-threatening, widespread windstorm that could be one of the most destructive to hit the region in over a decade roars to life and creates extremely dangerous fire weather conditions.