Video footage showed “fire tornadoes” — red-hot spirals that occur when a blaze is so intense it creates its own weather system.
The ferocious fire also left streaks of molten metal flowing from burnt-out cars.
But containment of the 14,000-acre Eaton Fire in Altadena had improved, figures showed, with 27 percent of its perimeter controlled.
The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner published a list of fatalities without giving details of any identities. Eight of the dead were found in the Palisades Fire zone, and 16 in the Eaton Fire zone, the document said.
The total number of residents under evacuation orders dropped to around 100,000, from a peak of almost 180,000.
The sudden rush of people needing somewhere to live has posed a growing problem for the city, with reports of illegal price gouging from opportunistic landlords.
“I’m back on the market with tens of thousands of people,” said a man who gave his name as Brian, whose rent-controlled apartment had burned. “That doesn’t bode well.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom vowed the city would rebuild, saying there would be a “Marshall Plan” — a reference to the US support that put Europe back on its feet after World War II.
“We already have a team looking at reimagining L.A. 2.0,” he said.
‘Worst catastrophes’
President-elect Donald Trump has accused California officials of incompetence.