At least 28 people are believed to be dead and more than a dozen others remain unaccounted for as multiple wildfires rage across Southern California.

A rare Particularly Dangerous Situation warning has been issued for Southern California as a powerful and potentially damaging Santa Ana wind event​ is expected.

Firefighters in Southern California are once again battling a wildfire, this time in Castaic in Los Angeles County, north of Los Angeles itself. Evacuation orders have been issued for the surrounding areas.

A brush fire erupted amid powerful winds Wednesday afternoon in the Castaic area in the northern region of Los Angeles County, spreading quickly to 10,176 acres near the freeway, officials said.

An explosive new wildfire erupted north of Los Angeles on Wednesday, forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes and setting nerves jangling in an area still reeling from two deadly blazes. Ferocious flames devoured hillsides near Castaic Lake, spreading rapidly to cover more than 9,400 acres in just a few hours.

After a weekend of reprieve allowing fire teams to continue making progress battling the deadly infernos burning in Los Angeles County, Southern California now faces another round of fire-fueling Santa Ana winds.

Dozens of people are believed to have died in the Palisades and Eaton fires, which have burned down whole swaths of communities

The Santa Anas are expected to be most powerful Monday night into Tuesday. Fire services across the region say they are ready.

With the strongest gusts expected on Tuesday, extreme fire condition threats will prevail until midweek, L.A.-area fire chiefs say.

"A strong Santa Ana Wind event is expected to develop Monday and last through at least Tuesday," the National Weather Service said.

As winds across the Southern California area are calmer than their peak and firefighters are making progress, the threat to the fire-weary region remains with Santa Ana winds expected to continue in the coming days.