Coverage of when the Hughes fire exploded north of Castaic, the areas under evacuation orders and an extended red flag warning.

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 brush fire erupted amid powerful winds Wednesday afternoon in the Castaic area in the northern region of Los Angeles County, spreading quickly to 10,176 acres near the freeway, officials said.

With high winds driving the flames, a fast-moving wildfire exploded to more than 10,000 acres near the Los Angeles County community of Castaic Wednesday, prompting mandatory evacuation orders for tens of thousands of people.

A fast-moving brush fire erupted in Los Angeles County on Wednesday morning, quickly racing across 1,000 acres of terrain, aided by heavy, dry fuels and pushed by gusting Santa Ana winds.

The Hughes Fire has spread over 5,054 acres after starting just before lunchtime in Los Angeles County's Castaic Lake area on Wednesday.

Firefighters on the ground and in the air rushed to slow a rapidly spreading brush fire that exploded near Castaic on Wednesday, forcing evacuations around Lake Castaic and impacting traffic on

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.

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,

Overnight water drops helped stop the spread of a huge wildfire churning through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles.