Over 50,000 under evacuation orders or warnings as a new fast-moving wildfire swept through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles.
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00:00Evacuations have been ordered for remote communities near mountains north of Los Angeles after
00:06a new wildfire erupted.
00:08The Hughes Fire, which authorities say is wind-driven, has quickly grown, burning through
00:13more than 20 square kilometers of trees and brush in its first few hours.
00:18The fire also sent up massive plumes of dark smoke near the Lake Castaic area.
00:23Castaic is located just over 60 kilometers away from the Pacific Palisades neighborhood,
00:28which suffered the worst fire damage in Los Angeles.
00:32Some 14,000 structures were burnt to a crisp in the Palisades fire, which broke out on
00:37the 7th of January and continues to burn for its third week.
00:41The Hughes Fire comes as parched Southern California prepares for possible rain this
00:46weekend.
00:48Experts say even a small amount of rain could create new challenges, like toxic runoff from
00:52burnt debris.
00:54Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has informed authorities to prepare the city for rain to
00:59not add to the ongoing crisis and mitigate environmental impacts.
01:03We are beginning in a proactive way in anticipation of rain to make sure that if rain does come
01:11that it doesn't add further to the crisis that we've been in.
01:15There's a lot of hazardous materials, toxics that could go into the ocean.
01:21We want to prevent that.
01:23In an executive order, Bass instructed authorities to remove vegetation, shore up hillsides,
01:28install barriers, and reinforce roads.
01:31The possible weekend rain brings the risk of floods, landslides, and mud and toxic debris
01:36flows.