California officials on Tuesday announced residents in certain Palisades Fire evacuation zones will be allowed to return home, as the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department increases security measures to address looting incidents.

Fires across the Los Angeles area have killed at least 24 people and destroyed more than 12,000 structures, officials said, scorching more than 60 square miles and displacing tens of thousands of people.

At least 28 people are believed to be dead and more than a dozen others remain unaccounted for as multiple wildfires rage across Southern California.

Twenty-seven people have died across the Los Angeles area. Officials have said the true death toll isn’t known as the fires continue to burn.

In May 2024, the city of Los Angeles adopted a Fiscal Year 2024 - 2025 budget that cut the appropriations for the fire department by $17.6 million from the previous year. At the time, the city of Los Angeles was negotiating the union contract with the firefighters' union, the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City.

Amid the tragedy a look at the before and after pictures of neighbourhoods from Malibu, to Hollywood Hills, Pasadena and the Los Angeles skyline.

As Santa Ana winds returned to Southern California, residents and first responders braced for another day of critical fire weather.

Officials are bracing for the return of fierce Santa Ana winds as they try to contain large blazes in the Los Angeles area. Here's the latest.

Gusts of up to 70 mph are possible along the coast and valleys, and in the mountains, up to 100 mph, the National Weather Service said. Parts of L.A. County, and most of Ventura County, are at highest risk.

As winds across the Southern California area are calmer than their peak and firefighters are making progress, the threat to the fire-weary region remains with Santa Ana winds expected to continue in the coming days.

Forecasters in Southern California expect to issue a 'particularly dangerous situation' red flag warning for the coming week as the Santa Ana wind forecast worsens.