Dangerous wildfires are burning on the East and West coasts Monday, with firefighters in New York and New Jersey working to contain a deadly blaze spurred by an ongoing, historic drought – while strong winds in Southern California could fan a destructive fire in Ventura County.

Strong winds are expected to return to Southern California, raising fears the Mountain Fire, which has already damaged and destroyed dozens of homes in Ventura County, could continue to spread Monday after calmer weekend weather allowed firefighters to get its containment up to 31%.

Wind advisories are in place for parts of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, where gusts of 50 to 60 mph are possible Monday, while a cold front could bring a slight chance of rain.

The fire has burned around 20,600 acres as of Sunday night, according to Cal Fire. Since the flames sparked Wednesday, 168 structures have been destroyed and another 67 damaged. Six injuries have been reported, including five civilians and one firefighter, officials said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, with officials looking into whether power lines may have contributed.

The blaze has prompted thousands of evacuations orders, with some families returning to find their homes damaged or burned to the ground.

As the work to rein in the flames in Southern California continues, firefighters on the East Coast are also battling fires in New York and New Jersey as the region contends with an ongoing, historic drought, dry air and high winds.

On the East Coast, firefighters are facing an ongoing drought, dry air and high winds as they battle the Jennings Creek Fire, which has burned thousands of acres near the New York-New Jersey border and led to the death of an 18-year-old New York State Forest Ranger volunteer, officials said.

The fire is 10% contained, has burned 3,000 acres and is threatening 25 structures, according to officials.

“It’s inevitable that this fire is going to continue to burn up until it reaches our control lines,” Bill Donnelly, chief of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said during a news conference on Sunday, adding that fire officials hope to secure control lines by the end of the week.

New York has not had a fire season like this year since 2002, according to Forest Ranger Jeremy Oldroyd, of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Nearly 600 wildfires have burned nearly 7,000 acres in New Jersey and New York since October 1, according to officials.

Most of the fires were in New Jersey, where the state’s Forest Fire Service has responded to 537 wildfires. That’s nearly 500 more than the same period last year – and the flames have claimed about 4,500 acres, Bill Donnelly, chief of the fire service said during a media briefing Sunday.

“New Jersey hasn’t seen anything this dry since, you know, we began keeping records, which is one of the obstacles we’re facing,” Donnelly said. “We have fires in New Jersey that have been burning since July 5, if that’s any indication of how dry it is and what we’re dealing with.”

Homes lost to the blaze

In California, as officials assess the damage already inflicted by the Mountain Fire, Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said he’s “grateful for the number of lives that were saved and the fact that we have zero reported fatalities.”

“I know we suffered great damage, but thousands of homes were saved and hundreds of lives were rescued. I know we made mistakes, but we will learn from those mistakes,” Gardner said during a community meeting Sunday night.

Gardner pointed out the number of residents in the fire-affected area – about 30,000 including 7,000 who are non-native English speakers – made evacuating the area challenging.

“We were fortunate that the fire started at 9 o’clock in the morning, with daylight,” said Jim Fryhoff, the sheriff of Ventura County. “Imagine this at 9 o’clock at night, where it’s already dark. Then you lose power in an area that’s already dark, then you have smoke on top of that. This had the opportunity to be so exponentially worse.”

As the flames spread last week, residents were forced to evacuate at a moment’s notice. Jamie Randall and her husband left their Camarillo home with just two suitcases of clothes. When they returned late last week, they were shocked to discover little left of their property but burn scars and ash.

“I never thought in my wildest dreams, you know, that this would be the last time I would be standing at my house,” Randall told CNN affiliate KCBS/KCAL.

Terrie Morin, who fled with her husband and friends, recalled the panic: “Get the dog. Get out of here. You don’t have time, just get out!” As they escaped through thick smoke, they could only grab a few essentials.

As the community grapples with loss, many families are left to face the aftermath.

Stan Jensen and Dawn DaMart were over 1,000 miles away when their home in Camarillo was engulfed in flames. The couple watched in despair as news footage showed their house burning.

“We had a person working at the house doing remodeling and he said, ‘I don’t want to be the one to tell you this, but your house is burning down,’” DaMart said.

A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday to connect residents with service providers as part of the recovery and relief efforts.

Agricultural officials assessing the impact on farmland planted with avocados, citrus, and berries have estimated the damage at $2.4 million, the Ventura County Star reported. County Agricultural Commissioner Korinne Bell cautioned Friday the figure represents only 2% of the burned area, which encompasses approximately 12,000 acres of farmland, and the total cost is likely to rise, the Star reported.

As the situation evolves, residents are urged to stay informed and prepared for changing conditions.

CNN’s Lauren Mascarenhas, Robert Shackelford and Andy Rose contributed to this report.