The death toll from wildfires raging in California has risen to 31 after six more people were found killed in what is set to become the deadliest wildfire in the state’s history.
Officials said the bodies of five people were found in their burned-out homes and the sixth was found in a vehicle in northern California's so-called Camp Fire.
More than 200 people are still unaccounted for, police said.
The fire in the northern part of the state has claimed at least 29 lives since it broke out on Thursday.
Hundreds of kilometres to the south, at least two people have died in the fires threatening the wealthy beach community of Malibu, near Los Angeles.
Looting was reported in the southern fire area and arrests were made, police reported.
Hot dry winds expected to blow until tomorrow whipped up the flames and heightened the urgency of evacuation orders, officials said.
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Several officials urged residents to heed evacuation orders, noting they themselves had followed orders to leave their homes for safety.
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"Winds are already blowing. They are going to blow for the next three days. Your house can be rebuilt but you can't bring your life back," said a fire chief from Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The death toll now equals that of the Griffith Park Fire in 1933, the deadliest wildfire on record in California.
Several of the bodies discovered earlier this week were found in or near burned out cars, police have said.
The flames descended on the town of Paradise so fast that many people were forced to abandon their vehicles and run for their lives down the only road through the mountain town.
California’s governor Jerry Brown has written to US President Donald Trump asking him to declare a major disaster to bolster the emergency response and help residents recover.
"We're putting everything we've got into the fight against these fires and this request ensures communities on the frontlines get additional federal aid," Mr Brown's letter said.
Mr Trump, on a trip to France said in a Twitter post early yesterday, "With proper Forest Management, we can stop the devastation constantly going on in California. Get Smart!"
The president has previously blamed California officials for fires and threatened to withhold funding, saying the state should do more to remove rotten trees and other debris that fuel blazes.
State officials have blamed climate change and said many of the burn areas have been in federally managed lands.
Scottish actor Gerard Butler posted an image on his twitter account of his burned out home in Malibu.
Returned to my house in Malibu after evacuating. Heartbreaking time across California. Inspired as ever by the courage, spirit and sacrifice of firefighters. Thank you @LAFD. If you can, support these brave men and women at https://t.co/ei7c7F7cZx. pic.twitter.com/AcBcLtKmDU
— Gerard Butler (@GerardButler) November 11, 2018
At the People's Choice Awards in Santa Monica last night actor Melissa McCarthy said: "Please keep the victims,volunteers and firefighters in your thoughts."
She also asked people to donate to the Los Angeles fire Department Foundation.
