New wildfire in Los Angeles grows over 500 acres

That one's gonna go nuclear. It's big,

Jacob Weigler, a wildfire expert, told the New York Post ... about the Hughes blaze

Other people are hosing down their houses, too. I hope there's a house here to return to,

She said ... as cop cars raced through the streets and flames ripped through trees on a distant hillside

You know what the fuels are capable of doing in that area right now, and what the wind does is going to be a big deal for this,

he added

Its been stressful with those other fires, but now that this one is close to home it's just super stressful,

she said

There are critical fire conditions ongoing. Winds out of the northeast are 25-40 miles per hour. Winds tonight could gust up to 50-60 miles per hour."

NWS Meteorologist Ariel Cohen told Newsweek via phone on Wednesday

Firefighters from Angeles National Forest, as well as surged CAL FIRE and local, state, federal, and tribal partners, are responding to a brush fire located off Lake Hughes Rd North of Castaic Reservoir Rd, Castaic."

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said in a status update on Wednesday

Watch: The #HughesFire that started a few hours ago has now grown to 5000+ acres and is growing rapidly due to high winds. Currently 0% containment."

The rapid escalation of the Hughes Fire was captured in a time-lapse video shared by X user @BasedDK

It does have a high potential for spread because we are looking at 32 mph winds as we speak,

said L.A. County Fire Department Captain Sheila Kelliher Berkoh, as reported by CBS News

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We have over 200 firefighters assigned to [the Lilac fire] from various different agencies. Firefighters are making good progress, and we are cautiously optimistic."

Robert Johnson, a fire captain with Cal Fire, previously told Newsweek

Dangerous fire weather conditions will persist through Friday as fuels remain extremely dry and ready to burn. Any fire that starts can grow fast and out of control, even if the winds are not strong."

The NWS Los Angeles office said in a red flag warning

FAST MOVING WILDFIRE. AN EVACUATION ORDER HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR West of I-5 . LEAVE NOW. Follow instructions from emergency personnel."

NWS Los Angeles said in a fire warning issued shortly after the Hughes fire ignited

We’ve seen the devastation caused by people failing to follow those orders in the Palisades and Eaton fires,

he said

I'm just praying that our house doesn't burn down,

one man told broadcaster KTLA as he packed his car

But even if the rain doesn’t materialize this time, it could be a good practice run for those communities because this will be a threat that they’ll have to deal with for months or years,

Kittell said Tuesday

We're going to see another round of critical fire conditions across Southern California,

Todd Hall, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said Wednesday morning

As the fires have settled, new challenges lie ahead,

Supervisor Kathryn Barger said during a Wednesday news conference

Even a brief exposure can potentially cause skin irritation and lead to more serious problems,

Ferrer said Wednesday, asking people to wear protective gear while cleaning up

Our concern is the next fire, the next spark that causes the next wildfire,

said David Acuna, a spokesperson with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire

Significant fire weather conditions are ongoing into Thursday with an increase in winds expected (especially Thurs a.m.) and severely dry conditions."

NWS Los Angeles said on X, formerly Twitter, yesterday

The next chance of significant rain over the next six weeks appears to be Feb. 10-23. If appreciable rain doesn't occur during that stretch, it may turn dry into much of March, further exacerbating the wildfire situation."

AccuWeather lead long-range meteorologist Paul Pastelok said