New rapidly spreading fire erupts near Los Angeles, more than 9,000 acres burned
A new wildfire tore through northern Los Angeles County Wednesday, burning over 9,000 acres just hours after it was first reported, El.kz cites Anadolu.
The rapidly spreading Hughes Fire is burning north of the small community of Castaic, located northwest of the city of Los Angeles. Sweeping evacuation orders have already been issued in the area prompting tens of thousands to flee with other nearby communities being warned that they may also be forced to evacuate.
The fire was assessed to be at 50 acres when it was first reported at 10.53 am local time (1853GMT), but quickly exploded amid red flag warnings to more than 9,200 acres by 8.27 pm Wednesday (0427GMT Thursday), according to data from CalFire, the California state fire agency.
It remains 0% contained as firefighters scramble to address the inferno after it spread into nearby Ventura County.
The blaze is the latest to strike the greater Los Angeles area after a series of fires began to sweep through America's second-largest city on Jan. 7. The first inferno, the Palisades Fire, has devasted the upscaled coastal community of the Pacific Palisades while another major blaze, the Eaton Fire, tore through wide swathes of the foothill city of Altadena.
A total of 11 people were killed in the Palisades Fire while 17 died in the Eaton Fire. The infernos have left mass devastation in their wake, forcing thousands of residents to scramble to find new homes.
They are now 68% and 91% contained, respectively, after more than two weeks of expansive firefighting efforts.