LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A brush fire ignited Wednesday near Castaic Lake in north Los Angeles County amid windy and dry conditions.
The blaze, called the Hughes Fire, erupted around 10:30 a.m. and forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
Red-flag warnings for critical fire risk were extended through Friday morning across L.A. and Ventura counties.
Mandatory evacuations were issued Wednesday in the Castaic area due to the fast-spreading Hughes Fire.
CAL FIRE's map shows the evacuation zones.
CAS-BISCAILUZ
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LAC-E008
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LAC-FRANCISQUITO
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VNC Zone 1.
CAS-INDUSTRY
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GOR-E004
GOR-HUNGRYVALLEY
LAC-E005
LAC-E009-B
LAC-E011-A
LAC-E011-B
LAC-E016
LAC-E018
LAC-E030
SCL-BLACKPINE
SCL-CALEX
SCL-DECORO
SCL-MOUNTAINVIEW
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VNC Zone 2.
- Ridge Route Rd at Lake Hughes
- Ridge Route Rd at Templin Hwy
- Lake Hughes at Pine Cyn
- Dry Gulch at San Francisquito Cyn Rd
- I-5 NB at Parker Rd Off Ramp and I-5 NB at Lake Hughes Rd off ramp will be shut down.
Evacuation shelters
- Evacuation center: Valencia High School - 27801 Dickson Dr, Valencia, CA 91355
Hundreds of inmates were evacuated from the Pitchess Detention Center due to the Hughes Fire on Wednesday.
The facility is located along The Old Road in Castaic.
Sheriff's officials said 476 inmates were evacuated to North County Correctional Facility for safety.
The 5 Freeway is shut down through the Grapevinejust north of State Route 126 due to the rapidly spreading flames from the Hughes Fire.
Lanes will be closed for an unknown duration.
You can useQuickMapor Google Maps to find alternate routes.
Evacuation orders have been extended into Ventura County, reaching the Lake Piru area west of Castaic.
A man who oversees multiple movie studios in the Santa Clarita Valley was forced to stop production Wednesday due to the Hughes Fire.
Daniel Veluzat with Santa Clarita Movie Ranch said at least one of his studios was forced to evacuate.
"We just pulled the plug on any production today," he said. "It's just not worth the risk. With these high winds, and the way that these embers fly like missiles, we can't take the chance. Those that don't understand how these fires work, somebody has to make that call and say, 'We've got to get to safety.'"
