As of Thursday morning, tens of thousands of residents are still under evacuation orders and warnings as firefighters work to contain the Hughes Fire near Castaic. The fire, which started around 11 a.m. Wednesday near Lake Hughes Road close to Castaic Lake, spread quickly due to strong winds and rugged terrain.
By 11:36 p.m. Wednesday, the Hughes Fire had burned 10,176 acres, prompting thousands of firefighters to respond. Crews had managed to increase containment to 14%, according to Cal Fire.
Firefighters made steady progress overnight, extinguishing flare-ups and addressing hotspots. While winds were calm early Thursday, they were expected to intensify later in the morning.
Although no homes or structures have been reported lost, officials told KTLA that around 31,000 people, including residents of Castaic, were under evacuation orders. A section of Ventura County near Lake Piru was also included in the mandatory evacuation zone.
Approximately 23,000 others were placed under evacuation warnings, including residents in Ventura County south of Lake Piru.
An evacuation center was established for residents at the College of the Canyons, located at 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road in Santa Clarita.
Due to the fire, the 5 Freeway was briefly closed between the 126 Freeway and Grapevine Road, but the California Highway Patrol reopened the route by Wednesday evening.
All schools in the Castaic Union School District will be closed on Thursday because of the fire. Additional closures are expected in the William S. Hart Union High School District and the Saugus Union Elementary School District. A full list of school closures is available here.
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