The Storm Prediction Center, the agency of the National Weather Service tasked with issuing fire weather outlooks, says that the risk for fire conditions will remain elevated across Los Angeles heading into this weekend.

The weather will once again turn against Los Angeles after a brief respite that allowed fire fighters to gain ground on blazes across the second-most populous US city and offered enough pause for officials to begin trading accusations.

There were too many houses to protect, and not enough engines,” one fire captain in Los Angeles said. Though fire officials say they were well-prepared and simply overwhelmed by the elements, questions are being raised about whether the intensity of modern fires requires a new playbook.

Fierce wildfires are raging in the Los Angeles area, with fast-moving flames burning through homes and businesses. Residents are fleeing smoke-filled canyons.

Firefighters are battling to control a series of major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people f