Two wildfires ignited early Tuesday in San Diego, California's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. The Lilac Fire had burned about 20 acres at a moderate rate of speed and was zero percent contained, Cal Fire’s San Diego department said in a statement posted on social media.

Santa Ana winds are whipping Southern California on Tuesday, sparking fresh fears that progress made fighting wildfires that have scorched over 40,000 acres and left 27 dead could be reversed and more blazes could break out.

Investigators are looking for two men accused of stealing equipment from a fire engine in Southern California amid more brutal wildfires.

Firefighters quickly extinguished several brush fires that erupted Monday in Southern California amid windy and dry conditions. The extreme fire weather is raising the risk of new wildfires like the two major blazes that started two weeks ago and are still burning in the Los Angeles area.

Evacuations were ordered Tuesday when the Friars Fire broke out near a San Diego mall and flames ran up a hillside toward residences, Cal Fire said

Southern Californians are bracing for gusty winds and a heightened risk of wildfires less than two weeks after deadly blazes that have killed at least 27 people and ravaged thousands of homes