Over 30,000 people have been forced to leave their homes as terrifying wildfires propelled by nearly 100 miles per hour winds raze across different parts of Southern California on Wednesday.

The New York Times reported that red flames filled the atmosphere as multiple blazes engulfed densely populated areas in Southern California as the fire laid waste to homes and businesses with the cities and highways covered in smoke.

Authorities have estimated the level of destruction but warned that the wildfires had yet to peak, with increasingly wild winds expected to fuel the out-of-control blazes and hamper fire-fighters into Wednesday, the Times reported.

Several houses have been destroyed along the scenic Pacific Coast, with Traci Park, the Los Angeles city councilwoman whose district includes Pacific Palisades, was quoted as saying “This is going to be devastating, a devastating loss, for all of Los Angeles.”

Palisades is the site of the biggest wildfires, which started on Tuesday in the affluent neighbourhood west of downtown Los Angeles and exploded to nearly 3,000 acres by night.

“These embers are blowing everywhere, and I’m just watching it chew up the hillside,” said Sheila Kelliher, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department. “As it gets to each new patch of fuel, it’s just exploding,” she added.