Over ten thousand people were ordered to evacuate communities northwest of Los Angeles as fierce seasonal winds drove a wildfire down tinder-dry hillsides into ranches and homes, authorities said, Paralel.Az reports citing Reuters.

Firefighters and police cleared residents from neighborhoods near Camarillo before homes were set ablaze by embers blown two miles (3.2 km) from the fire front, Ventura County fire department Captain Tony McHale said by phone from near the blaze.

"It's like trying to put out a blowtorch with a squirt gun," said McHale of the fire which began in a hillside canyon on Wednesday then tore west, driven by Santa Ana winds.

Fueled by abundant grass and scrub, with wind gusts up to 80 mph (130 kph), the blaze has burned over 14,500 acres (5,900 hectares), authorities said.

Several civilians were injured and a significant number of homes, businesses and other structures destroyed, McHale said, adding that it was too dangerous to enter the area to assess damage.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said the fire threatened 3,500 structures.

Schools in Ventura County were closed through Friday due to the fires, according to the county's office of education.

The fire expanded in size on Wednesday after powerful winds came into contact with very dry air.