As the sun began to set over Castaic Lake on Wednesday, the hills to the north and east were engulfed in flames, casting an eerie orange glow across the valley below.

The Hughes Fire grew rapidly near Castaic Lake, about 45 miles northwest of the city of Los Angeles, after it broke out at around 10.53am PST on Wednesday. No homes or businesses have been damaged, but about 31,000 residents have been forced to flee, officials said, with thousands more under evacuation warnings.

Firefighters battled two new brush fires - the Hughes Fire near Castaic Lake and the Sepulveda Fire in Bel Air, along the 405 Freeway.

The Hughes Fire near Castaic, California, has burned over 5,000 acres, prompting evacuations and school closures.

The Hughes Fire in Castaic area has burned more than 9,400 acres in just hours. While Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone called it a "difficult fire," he said that crews are "getting the upper hand on containing the blaze."

A brush fire erupted amid powerful winds Wednesday morning in the Castaic area, quickly spreading to more than 9,000 acres.

As of Wednesday night, nearly 31,000 people are under evacuation orders with another 23-thousand under evacuation warnings.That fire, hitting close to home for

The Hughes Fire, which scorched over 5,000 acres in less than three hours on Wednesday, caused multiple neighborhoods in the Castaic area to evacuate quickly.  The blaze was first reported shortly

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.

About 31,000 area residents were under evacuation orders and 23,000 under evacuation warnings Wednesday evening due to the Hughes Fire, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said.

Fire crews are battling a swiftly growing blaze dubbed the Hughes Fire burning near Interstate 5 in Castaic, in the northern part of Los Angeles County.