Southern California is braced for "extremely critical fire conditions" caused by a new period of Santa Ana winds of up to 50 mph.

Firefighters on Tuesday held the line against two massive wildfires that have ravaged parts of Los Angeles for the past week, even as desert winds and a parched landscape presented extremely hazardous conditions.

Firefighters around Los Angeles were preparing on Tuesday to attack flare-ups or new blazes. The National Weather Service issued a rare warning that dry winds combined with severely dry conditions created a “ particularly dangerous situation,