New Wildfire Erupts in LA County, 8,000 Acres Burn in Hours

LA County just can’t catch a break. Earlier today another fire started in some brush north of Los Angeles and within 2 hours it had expanded to 5,000 acres.

The blaze, dubbed the Hughes Fire, was reported shortly before 10:45 a.m. by the Angeles National Forest.

It was spreading through dry brush and trees largely on the east side of the lake, fanned by Santa Ana winds. The fire was initially reported at 50 acres but had exploded to more than 5,000 acres by 1 p.m., according to Cal Fire, with no containment.

That was earlier today but as of now CalFire says the fire has expanded to just over 8,000 acres. Thousands of people in the area are under mandatory evacuation orders:

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said 19,000 people were facing mandatory evacuation orders by 2:30 p.m. 

Mandatory evacuation orders were expanded as the wildfire spread to over 5,000 acres in just around two hours, sending people fleeing from the area as heavy traffic built up along some roads. Authorities were trying to keep people calm as the situation quickly unfolded — a changing series of new updates and evacuations being announced just as they were earlier this month.

So far the cause of the fire is unknown. The area of the forest where it started was supposed to be off limits this week. Here’s a map showing the location of the new fire relative to the two last week. That’s the Palisades fire on the lower left, the Eaton fire on the right and the Hughes fire up top.

Here is the location of the #HughesFire in relation to the Palisades Fire (bottom left) and Eaton Fire (bottom right) perimeters. https://t.co/QdxWZ4ibDh pic.twitter.com/RFdcHjJLVO

— KTLA (@KTLA) January 22, 2025

The I5 freeway, which is the major connection from Los Angeles to Central California has been closed down because of the flames. This is a major route for passengers heading north but also for trade. Trucks of food and other goods from the central valley come through this area every day. Having it shut down even for a day is going to inconvenience a lot of people and create headaches for a lot of businesses.

Lots of video of the Hughes fire being posted this afternoon.

#HughesFire from my backyard, just before we evacuated. Praying for everyone’s safety. pic.twitter.com/2UUppUIVmH

— W. F. Smith Leithart (@wfsleithart) January 22, 2025

Over 5k acres and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down one bit! Headed around the lake and pushing towards the 5 freeway. #lakehughesfire #breaking

Shot from Lake Hughes Rd pic.twitter.com/XoGoMYOC6M

— FirePhotoGirl (@FirePhotoGirl) January 22, 2025

#breakingnews #hughesfire

Lake Hughes Rd pic.twitter.com/x6yxMX90lG

— FirePhotoGirl (@FirePhotoGirl) January 22, 2025

HUGHES FIRE burning towards Castaic, fire being pushed by winds gusting to 40mph, humidity at 6%…sometimes you recognize that it is time to leave an area, this is one of those times. @knxnews pic.twitter.com/plZKEqtBI2

— Pete Demetriou (@knxpete) January 22, 2025

Winds up to 35 mph are pushing the flames and so far there is 0% containment.

🇺🇸🔥 HUGHES FIRE IN CALIFORNIA NEARING 10,000 ACRES WITH ZERO CONTAINMENT

Dry conditions, winds, and unchecked vegetation have created another perfect storm for fire in LA County.

When will citizens hold Newsom accountable for his lack of preparation? 👀

Here are the locations… pic.twitter.com/rcWK3wAuTj

— Diligent Denizen 🇺🇸 (@DiligentDenizen) January 22, 2025

Finally, those other two major fires still aren’t out yet. The Palisades fire is 68% contained and the Eaton fire near Pasadena is 91% contained.