A windswept Southern California brush fire which exploded to 20,000 acres in about 24 hours, destroying homes and prompting mass evacuations, remained out of control Thursday as Gov. Gavin Newsom marshalled state and federal resources to combat the fire.

The November fire occurred amid unusually warm temperatures and strong Santa Ana winds. The National Weather Service issued red flag warnings for Ventura and Los Angeles counties that will remain in effect until at least Friday morning.

Ventura County remains under an “extremely critical” wildfire warning as firefighters fight to gain the upper hand on the Mountain Fire, which has burned 19,643 acres and destroyed an unknown number of homes since it began near the city of Camarillo around 9:41 a.m. PT on Wednesday. The fire was 0% contained Thursday.

Aerial images of the ABC station in Los Angeles. KABC showed what appeared to be row after row of destroyed homes in the cities of Camarillo, Moorpark and Somis.

Several people were taken to hospitals to be treated for smoke inhalation and other injuries, Ventura County emergency officials said. Some victims were trapped in their cars as they fled the fast-moving flames, authorities said.

“We know we’ve lost homes, we know we’ve suffered damage and we know injuries, but I don’t have any counts,” Officer Scott Dettorre, spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department, told ABC News.

At least 14,000 people were ordered to evacuate, Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff said.

Newsom announced Wednesday that he has mobilized statewide resources to help fight the fire and has secured a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to make vital resources available to extinguish the fire.

The California Office of Emergency Services said it had prepositioned 48 firefighting crews, nine helicopters and more than 100 personnel in 19 California counties ahead of the forecast of dangerous fires in many parts of coastal and inland California.

“This is a dangerous fire that is spreading rapidly and threatening lives,” Newsom said in a statement. “State resources have been mobilized to protect communities, and this federal support from the Biden-Harris Administration will provide state and local firefighters the resources they need to save lives and property as they continue to battle this aggressive fire.”

The Mountain Fire is one of two wind-driven fires that broke out in Southern California, prompting the NWS to issue rare red flag warnings in November for Los Angeles and Ventura counties, warning of a ” extreme fire risk” from Malibu to the San Gabriel Mountains. north of Los Angeles, where winds could gust up to 100 mph.

“A very strong, widespread, long-lived Santa Ana wind event will bring extremely critical fire weather conditions to many areas of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Wednesday through Thursday,” according to the NWS warning.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation Thursday.

Due to extreme wind conditions, fixed-wing aircraft are unable to assist in firefighting efforts, according to the Ventura Fire Department, which said ground crews, helicopters and mutual aid resources are ” actively working to protect lives and property.”

Wide fire

A second wildfire broke out Wednesday in the Malibu area of ​​Los Angeles County, called the Broad Fire, and has burned at least 50 acres southwest of South Malibu Canyon Road and Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in Malibu, according to CAL Fire.

The fire was 15% contained Wednesday night, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Local firefighters warned residents to prepare for possible evacuations and the PCH was closed in both directions between Webb Way and Corral Canyon.

Wind conditions in Santa Ana

The region’s Santa Ana winds, named after the Santa Ana Canyon in Southern California, bring blustery, dry, hot winds blowing in from the desert, drying out vegetation and increasing the danger of wildfires.

The long-duration Santa Ana wind event was expected to peak Wednesday night, become moderate Thursday, and then taper off to light offshore winds Friday.

Northeast winds of 20 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph are expected in the canyons and passes of Southern California, with stronger winds in more wind-prone areas.

Another wind surge is expected to peak Thursday morning with widespread northeasterly winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph before weakening considerably Thursday afternoon.