Hughes Fire containment grows after thousands are forced to flee
Firefighters gained more ground Thursday on a fast-moving brushfire that erupted north of Los Angeles the day before and within hours exploded to thousands of acres amid high winds, officials said.
LOS ANGELES — Firefighters gained more ground Thursday on a fast-moving brush fire that erupted north of Los Angeles on Wednesday and within hours exploded to thousands of acres amid high winds, officials said.
The Hughes Fire, which started near Castaic Lake, was 36% contained and had burned more than 10,000 acres by Thursday evening, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire.
No structures have been destroyed, officials said.
The fire had prompted mandatory evacuation orders Wednesday for more than 31,000 people. They had been lifted by Thursday afternoon, but around 54,900 people remained under an evacuation warning, meaning they should be prepared to leave if ordered, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.
Smoke from the Hughes Fire near Elderberry Lake in Castaic on Thursday.Maxar Technologies“This fire was one of those tough, fast-moving Santa Ana wind-driven fires,” Brent Pascua, a battalion chief with Cal Fire, said Thursday.
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