(CNN) —
The race to stop an inferno torching the Los Angeles area has gotten more dangerous as furious winds – some as strong as in a hurricane – stoke the flames.
Gusts of up to 70 mph will fuel the Getty Fire through Thursday, threatening more than 7,000 homes, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.
And that’s just one of at least 10 wildfires burning across California.
Photos: Wildfires scorch California
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Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images
Firefighters spray water on a backfire while battling the spread of the Maria Fire on Friday, November 1. It is just one of the numerous wildfires in California right now.
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Etienne Laurent/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
A firefighter works at containing the Maria Fire in the hills near Ventura, California, on November 1.
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Firefighters spray water onto a tree while fighting the Maria Fire in Ventura County, California, on November 1.
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A long-exposure photo shows the Maria Fire as it races across a hillside in Santa Paula, California, on November 1.
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Firefighters watch the progress of a backfire near Somis.
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Watchara Phomicinda/Orange County Register via ZUMA Wire
The remains of the Louis Robidoux Nature Center keep smoldering after the structure was destroyed by a wildfire in Riverside, California.
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Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images
A firefighter sprays down the smoldering remains of a burning home in San Bernardino, California, on Thursday, October 31. It was affected by the Hillside Fire.
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Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
Marco Alcaraz uses a garden hose to try to slow down the advance of the Easy Fire in Simi Valley.
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Christian Monterrosa/AP
Firefighters work to prevent a blaze from spreading to other homes in San Bernardino.
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An Air Force One from Ronald Reagan's presidency sits on display as the Easy Fire burns near Reagan's presidential library on October 30.
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Christian Monterrosa/AP
Firefighters brace themselves for incoming fire retardant as they battle the Easy Fire in Simi Valley.
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Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP
Fabio Losurdo comforts his horse, Smarty, at a ranch in Simi Valley on October 30.
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Will Lester/The Orange County Register/AP
Flames approach the backyards of mobile homes in Jurupa Valley, California, on October 30.
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Laura Horvitz, right, and Robyn Phipps help rescue goats from a ranch near the Reagan Presidential Library.
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Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images
Health care workers evacuate the Riverside Heights Healthcare Center on October 30.
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Noah Berger/AP
Inmate firefighters battle the Kincade Fire near Healdsburg, California, on Tuesday, October 29.
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Guy Wathen/AP
A home between Healdsburg and Windsor is surrounded by charred ground on October 29.
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Wally Skalij/AP
From left, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti tour a burned home in Brentwood, California, on October 29.
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Firefighters work near the Getty Center in Los Angeles on Monday, October 28.
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Qian Weizhong/Xinhua/Sipa USA
Thousands of Los Angeles residents were forced to evacuate their homes because of the Getty Fire.
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Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP
Los Angeles County firefighter Collin Bashara rests near his truck on October 28.
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Noah Berger/AP
Smoke from the Kincade Fire hangs over Healdsburg as farm animals graze in a pasture on October 28.
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Christian Monterrosa/AP
A man walks past a burning home in Los Angeles on October 28.
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Gregory Bull/AP
Fire crews walk along a blackened ridge as they battle the Getty Fire in Los Angeles.
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Ethan Swope/AP
Firefighters battling the Kincade Fire spray water at a home in Windsor on Sunday, October 27.
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Max Whittaker/The New York Times/Redux Pictures
Firefighters burn fuel around a home in Windsor in an effort to save it from the Kincade Fire.
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Noah Berger/AP
Dr. Emily Putt, a veterinarian who helps rescue horses from fire zones, comforts a horse as the Kincade Fire burns in Healdsburg on October 27.
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Noah Berger/AP
A firefighter passes a burning home as the Kincade Fire rages in Healdsburg on October 27.
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Stephen Lam/Reuters
Vines smolder in a cloud of smoke in Healdsburg.
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Noah Berger/AP
Flames from the Kincade Fire consume a home in Healdsburg.
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Stephen Lam/Reuters
A team of firefighters put out a smoldering vine in Healdsburg.
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Noah Berger/AP
The Soda Rock Winery burns in the Kincade Fire.
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Noah Berger/AP
Firefighters from the Dry Creek Rancheria remove an American flag in Healdsburg.
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A firefighter watches over a structure as the Kincade Fire threatens Chalk Hill Road in Healdsburg.
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A firefighter sets a backfire along a hillside in Healdsburg on Saturday, October 26.
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Noah Berger/AP
A line of fire snakes along a hillside as firefighters light backfires to slow the spread of the Kincade Fire near Geyserville, California, on October 26.
Photos: Wildfires scorch California
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Noah Berger/AP
Sodhi Singh closes up his Chevron station shortly after losing power in Healdsburg on October 26. In an attempt to avoid any more catastrophic wildfires, Pacific Gas & Electric began shutting down the power to about 940,000 customers, citing a historic wind event in northern and central parts of the state.
Photos: Wildfires scorch California
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A backfire set by firefighters burns along a hillside in Healdsburg.
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Noah Berger/AP
Sandy Beddow evacuates Healdsburg with her dog.
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Firefighters set a backfire along a hillside in Healdsburg.
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Firefighters hose down a burning house in Agua Dulce, California, on Friday, October 25. It was affected by the Tick Fire, which broke out near Santa Clarita.
Photos: Wildfires scorch California
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Orange County firefighters put out remaining hot spots from a brush fire in San Clemente, California, on October 25.
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A firefighting aircraft intervenes over Sonoma County, California, where the Kincade Fire was burning on October 25.
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Noah Berger/AP
A firefighter sprays water on a burning home in Sonoma County on Thursday, October 24.
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A Los Angeles County firefighter monitors the area as the Tick Fire burns near homes in Canyon Country on October 24.
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Noah Berger/AP
The Kincade Fire burns in the Jimtown community of Sonoma County on October 24.
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Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
A firefighter works the scene of a burned-out home in Santa Clarita on October 24.
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Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
Brandon Mani covers his face from the smoke as he walks along Highway 14 in Santa Clarita.
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Noah Berger/AP
A helicopter passes a smoke plume on October 24.
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A structure continues to burn after the Kincade Fire moved through Geyserville on October 24.
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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Geyserville, about 80 miles north of San Francisco, is among the communities under mandatory evacuation order.
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Stephen Lam/Reuters
Two firefighters discuss a plan while battling the wildfire in Geyserville.
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Stephen Lam/Reuters
The sun rises above a smoke-filled valley in Geyserville on October 24.
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Kent Porter/AP
A fire whirl whips across dry brush as the Kincade Fire spreads through Sonoma County on October 24.
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Trees burn as the fire engulfs a hillside in Geyserville.
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Noah Berger/AP
Embers fly across a roadway in Jimtown on October 24.
A new brush fire erupted Wednesday morning in Simi Valley, 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles and home to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Wind gusts of hurricane force – at least 74 mph – were reported at a weather station about 7 miles north of Simi Valley.
The newly formed Easy Fire quickly consumed 1,300 acres in Ventura County, officials said. It threatened 6,500 homes and forced school closures and evacuations, including one at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, where a few staff stayed behind to protect what they can. The former President and his wife, Nancy, are buried at the site.
“We feel safe,” library spokeswoman Melissa Giller said.
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KABC
The Easy Fire burns near the Ronald Regan Presidential Library.
The blaze burned on all sides of the library complex but the buildings were not in imminent danger, according to Chad Cook, an assistant chief with the Ventura County Fire Department. But the area was still hot and not immediately in the clear, he said.
Heavy winds “are a major concern to us,” Ventura County Fire Capt. Brian McGrath told CNN affiliate KABC.
About 26,000 people were forced from their homes by the Simi Valley fire, Sheriff Bill Ayub told reporters. Power had been shut off in some areas, he said.
The flames bore down on Highway 23 on the west side of Simi Valley, and could jump the highway.
“We are not out of the woods yet,” said Chad Cook, an assistant chief of the Ventura County Fire Department.
Phil Misiowiec, who lives in Wood Ranch, near the library, described a massive air assault on the blaze by Ventura County and Los Angeles firefighters.
“Winds are tremendously strong and erratic,” he told CNN. “We are just outside the evacuation zone but are packed and ready to go if things change.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the state had secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help fight the Easy Fire. The grant allows affected local and state and agencies to apply for a 75% reimbursement of eligible fire suppression costs.
Hours after the Easy Fire began, yet another blaze erupted in the city of Jurupa Valley, east of Los Angeles, according to Cal Fire. Known as the Hill Fire, it burned across 50 acres and led to the mandatory evacuations and the shutdown of Highway 60.
Hurricane-force wind gusts of 74 mph were also reported Wednesday at a weather station in the mountains outside of Malibu, according to the National Weather Service. Dozens of stations across southern parts of the state reported gusts of more than 50 mph, with relative humidity lower than 10% – factors helping to fuel the blazes.
The Getty Fire scorched 745 acres and was 27% contained, Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas told reporters. “Please keep in mind that the Getty Fire is still an active fire and we are not out of danger,” said Fire Capt. Jaime Moore said.
Fierce Santa Ana winds could last through Thursday, the National Weather Service said.
The blaze was likely caused by a tree branch that broke off from high winds and landed on nearby power lines, sparking and igniting nearby brush, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.
An extreme red flag warning went into effect Tuesday night and will last through Thursday evening. It’s the first time the weather service has issued such a warning to convey potentially historic fire conditions.
At least 26 million people are under some kind of red-flag warning.
Brigitte Kouba Neves, a Los Angeles native, says her heart stopped when her neighbor knocked on her door early Monday and told her they were in the evacuation zone.
“I can’t explain the feeling of packing a bag with the items I want to save from a fire,” she said in an Instagram post describing how she and her husband chose daily essentials and their wedding album.
Neves lives in a voluntary evacuation zone. So far, she’s been safe, but that could change at any moment.
“Currently, we have our suitcases by the door, the car is packed, and we’re ready to go and say goodbye to our home if they say we must,” she wrote. But she told CNN what’s it’s like to live under constant threat and worry.
“I have 3-year-old twins with sensitive lungs, so school has been canceled a lot, they’ve had to wear masks, and we’ve discussed the fact that there are fires far away … and it changes air quality,” she said. “We’ve let them role play with their firefighter outfits and trucks.”
North of the San Francisco Bay, the week-old Kincade Fire – the state’s largest active wildfire – has destroyed nearly 77,000 acres across Sonoma County and more than 180 structures, including 86 single-family homes, officials said.
It was only 30% contained on Wednesday. At the Sonoma County Airport, several airlines have canceled all flights through Thursday.
The Kincade Fire started October 23, but the cause is still under investigation.
A driver tries to get past the Kincade Fire in Northern California.
The good news: Forecasters say winds will weaken through Thursday, and more residents can go home.
About 2,400 people from the 186,000 under evacuation orders had returned to their homes Tuesday night, Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said.
“Many of these people are still returning to homes that are without power because of the PG&E power shutoff,” he said. “So we want people to be vigilant, be aware communication may not be great.”
Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) cut off power to about 1 million customers in Northern California earlier this week in an attempt to prevent wildfires. But as hundreds of thousands started getting their power back, PG&E started another shutoff.
