Multiple wildfires, including the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire, are raging across southern California Thursday, leaving at least 5 dead and burning more than 27,000 acres, officials say. Police have arrested 20 suspected looters.

Firefighters are making progress slowing the major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and caused thousands of people to flee their homes.

Industry officials warn of widespread economic damage on par with some of the biggest fire disasters in recent memory.

The massive Palisades Fire broke out in Los Angeles on Tuesday afternoon, prompting mandatory evacuations affecting tens of thousands of people and highway closures. Later Tuesday, the Eaton Fire broke out in the foothills of Pasadena on the other side of Los Angeles County.

The wildfires that destroyed homes in multiple sections of the Los Angeles area will test California’s efforts to stabilize the state’s insurance marketplace after many insurers stopped issuing residential policies due to the high fire risk.

Though wildfires have always happened, warming global temperatures are making them more frequent and severe. For instance, scientists calculated last year that our overheating planet has contributed to a 172% increase in areas burned by wildfires in California since the 1970s.