CASTAIC, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters fought to maintain the upper hand on a huge and rapidly moving wildfire that swept through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles and resulted in more than 50,000 people being put under evacuation orders or warnings.

A new wildfire that erupted in northern Los Angeles County triggered tens of thousands of evacuation orders and warnings.

The fire threat remains critical in Southern California, where thousands of residents were under evacuation orders Wednesday as fire crews battled the out-of-control Hughes Fire near Castaic, a suburb in the foothills and mountains of northern Los Angeles County.

The Palisades and Eaton wildfires continue burning in the Los Angeles area that left parts of Southern California with devastating fire damage.

Exhausted firefighters battling deadly infernos for weeks are now grappling with two new wildfires torching Southern California.

Firefighters in Southern California conducted another fierce wildfire fight on Wednesday and into Thursday morning. Crews raced to contain the massive Hughes Fire in Los Angeles County while another blaze broke out near a busy freeway,

The Sepulveda fire was the latest blaze in a nerve-racking week as Southern California headed into a fourth consecutive day of red flag fire weather warnings. The alerts caution that conditions are ripe for fires to ignite and spread rapidly.

The Hughes fire seen from Magic Mountain has started north of Castaic and has exploded to more than 5,000 acres in under two hours on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Castaic, California. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times/TNS) (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Windy and dry conditions returned to Southern California on Monday, raising the risk of new wildfires sparking as firefighters continue to battle two major blazes in the Los Angeles area that started in similar weather nearly two weeks ago.

As winds across the Southern California area are calmer than their peak and firefighters are making progress, the threat to the fire-weary region remains with Santa Ana winds expected to continue in the coming days.

The investigation is critical for not only understanding what happened, but for ensuring it never happens again, said an attorney for 300 Altadena residents.