A fast-moving brush fire flared in the U.S. Los Angeles County Wednesday morning, spreading to more than 500 acres (2.02 square kilometers) with zero containment, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The blaze, known as Hughes Fire, was reported about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday local time in the area of Lake Hughes Road near Castaic Lake, some 80 kilometers northwest of Los Angeles downtown, the KTLA news channel reported, noting it spread to the size in less than one and a half hours.
Fueled by heavy and dry plants and pushed by gusting Santa Ana winds, the latest wildfire in Southern California spread rapidly, the authorities said, adding evacuation orders had been issued in the Castaic Lake area and nearby remote canyon areas.
This month, Los Angeles County has been inundated with deadly blazes. The largest in the United States' most populous county, the Palisades and Eaton fires have claimed 28 lives, forced several mandatory evacuations, and leveled thousands of structures.
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