Devastating fires in the Los Angeles region are driven by Santa Ana winds blowing from California and Nevada’s interior deserts to the Pacific Ocean.

The ferocious Santa Ana winds that helped fuel the deadly wildfires around Los Angeles are forecast to ease later Wednesday, but they may return.

The Palisades, Eaton, and Hurst fires covered more than 5,600 acres of Southern California as of Wednesday morning. Tens of thousands were under mandatory evacuation orders but the fires increased in size overnight, helped by the blustery Santa Ana winds.