Firefighters gained more ground Thursday on a fast-moving brushfire that erupted north of Los Angeles the day before and within hours exploded to thousands of acres amid high winds, officials said.

The approximately 10,176-acre Hughes Fire burning northeast of Castaic Lake in northern Los Angeles County has created smoke

Mandatory evacuation orders and warnings have been issued for a fast-moving wildfire that has burned at least 500 acres near the Los Angeles County community of Castaic Wednesday morning, authorities said.

Firefighters responded to a brush fire Wednesday north of Los Angeles on a day of red flag warnings for parts of Southern California.

Mark E. Potts is the senior editor for video at the Los Angeles Times. A native of Enid, Okla., Potts graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a master’s degree in broadcast journalism. He has created and edited video for DreamWorks, YouTube, Microsoft, Sony and BET.

Multiple firefighting aircraft have been deployed north of Los Angeles in LA County to counteract the spread of a new fire that has taken hold in the area.

The Hughes Fire, reported shortly before 11 a.m. Wednesday near Castaic Lake, prompted evacuation of a 280-square-mile area north of Los Angeles. The map above shows the mandatory evacuation area in red and the approximate perimeter as a black line.

A new wildfire broke out in Los Angeles County, California, Wednesday, called the Hughes fire that has already grown to more than 5,000 acres in size.

US President Donald Trump headed to California on Friday as firefighters in the Los Angeles area continue to confront multiple blazes amid high winds a

Firefighters continue to battle multiple blazes in Southern California while President Trump is set to visit Los Angeles to tour wildfire damage.

Much of Southern California is expected to get doused with desperately needed rainfall this weekend – but this could unleash new hazards.