Laguna fire sparks panic as Hughes blaze explodes in hills near LA: Live updates
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Two new fires are threatening to terrorize Los Angeles, a city that is still recovering from the catastrophic blazes that killed 26 people and torched thousands of homes earlier this month.
The fast-spreading Hughes Fire, which started Wednesday, is exploding in the hills near Santa Clarita, a rural enclave around 40 miles north west of Hollywood.
A separate fire has also broken out in the ritzy beach town of Laguna, where multi-million dollar mansions lie in the flames' path.
Tens of thousands of people were evacuated from their homes in Castaic, near Santa Clarita, to escape the Hughes fire.
Follow along for live updates.
Hughes Fire now burning over 10,000 acres
The Hughes Fire, which broke out yesterday, has scorched over 10,000 acres near Santa Clarita, and is currently only 14 percent contained.
Shocking images from the scene showed firefighters battling with the blaze - just ten days after Los Angeles was overtaken by the devastating Palisades Fire.
20:04
Evacuation orders issued for California State University
An evacuation order for California State University Channel Island was issued on Thursday after a fire erupted on nearby agricultural land.
The Laguna Fire sparked around 8:51 am PST in a field near the university in Camarillo, just 50 miles from downtown Los Angeles, according to the Ventura County Sheriff's Department.
The evacuation order included the school's University Glenn on-campus housing complex.
19:51
How did the Hughes Fire grow so rapidly?
Southern California has gone without any signifigant rainfall for nine months, contributing the rapid spread of the Hughes Fire, which has spread over 10,176 acres, according to CalFire.
'Extremely dry' vegetation was another possible contributor to the blaze, experts revealed.
Extremely low humidity helps dry out vegetation, making it a better fuel for fires.
Firefighters in Los Angeles are still working to contain two massive wildfires - the Palisades and Eaton Fires - which broke out on January 7 and have torn through nearly 40,000 acres in Los Angeles County.
The latest blazes have only added more strain to the county's already-depleted firefighting workforce.
The Hughes Fire has torched thoudsands of acres of land in a matter of hours, with an interactive map revealing the vast scale of the latest inferno to threaten homes and livelihoods in Los Angeles.
Vast swathes of land have been burning for days, live trackers show, with firefighters still struggling to get blazes, which first erupted on January 7, under control as new fires take hold.
Trump, along with House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republicans, has faced criticism from Dems and Republicans alike for suggesting that aid should come with strings attached.
