Aerial View Of Los Angeles Fire Damage Show Aftermath Of California Blazes

The recent wildfires have left Los Angeles -- the second-largest city in the United States and home to the country's rich and famous -- in rubble. Images taken from the air show block after block of greyish-brown ash, with just skeletal remains of homes, restaurants and shops left behind in the once-thriving neighbourhood. 

The two fires that broke out on January 7 have burned an area nearly the size of Washington, DC, according to the California Fire Department. The blaze, one of the most destructive natural disasters in Southern California, has killed at least 28 people and damaged or destroyed nearly 16,000 structures. 

(Source: Reuters)

While the appalling destruction in upscale Pacific Palisades and Malibu in the west has made most of the headlines, Altadena in the east has suffered even more.

Images of fire-damaged areas, taken from a helicopter, show some stone chimneys and trees standing defiantly tall in Altadena, the city that bore the brunt of the Easton Fire.

(Source: Reuters)

Several backyard swimming pools, burnt-out cars and twisted metal from homes were also visible from the sky.

(Source: Reuters)

To the west, the Palisades Fire created a scar in the hillside where the upscale enclave offered postcard-perfect views of the Pacific Ocean.

(Source: AFP)

Driven by an extreme autumn drought and fierce Santa Ana winds, the fires turned the dry hills of Los Angeles into kindling, fuelling a relentless inferno that has raged for more than a week. As of Wednesday, the Eaton Fire was 91 per cent contained and the Palisades Fire was 68 per cent contained, according to a report by Reuters.

But as firefighters were bust containing the previous two infernos, plumes of smoke rose from a new fire north of Los Angeles in Hughes. The new rapidly spread to 9,400 acres (38 square km), forcing mandatory evacuation orders for more than 31,000 people on Wednesday.

It was not immediately clear what sparked the fire, but it occurred during red flag fire conditions -- when meteorologists say strong winds and low humidity create conditions ripe for rapid fire spread.