Containing wildfires—never mind extinguishing them—in parched and windy conditions can be monstrously difficult. Dry vegetation is rocket fuel for blazes and wind both feeds the flames and spreads the embers. “The winds are like pointing an air blower at a fireplace,” says Gershunov, “except it’s not contained and it’s on a much larger scale.”

Fires across the Los Angeles area have killed at least 24 people and destroyed more than 12,000 structures, officials said, scorching more than 60 square miles and displacing tens of thousands of people.