A new, fast-moving wildfire has broken out in Los Angeles County, prompting tens of thousands to evacuate an area already reeling from the most destructive fires in its history.

The Hughes Fire broke out about 45 miles northwest of Los Angeles on Wednesday afternoon, near Castaic Lake in a mountainous area bordering several residential areas and schools.

The out-of-control fire grew to more than 9,400 acres in several hours, fueled by wind and dry brush acting as fuel. No homes or businesses were damaged, but about 31,000 residents were forced to flee, and Interstate 5 – the main highway that runs along the West Coast of the United States from Mexico to Canada – was closed.

The new blaze is burning just north of the two massive blazes — which are still burning — that destroyed several neighborhoods in the Los Angeles area earlier this month.

Two other fires were burning to the south near San Diego and Oceanside, officials said.

Both were smaller — 85 acres for the Lilac Fire near Oceanside and 3.9 acres for the Bernardo Fire — but they were burning in populated areas. It appears that the fire brigades were able to control the two fires, and evacuation orders were mostly lifted and forward progress stopped.

In Los Angeles County, local news showed people near the Hughes Fire flooding their homes and yards while others rushed to evacuate neighborhoods.

Orange flames lined the mountains as The planes dropped water and flame retardant.

The area is once again under a red flag warning, which warns of high fire risk due to strong winds, dry conditions and low humidity.

Winds in the area are gusting at about 20 to 30 mph but are expected to intensify throughout the day, which could allow the fire to grow and make it difficult for flight crews to continue their battle from above.

About 31,000 people in the area have been issued mandatory evacuation orders, and another 23,000 are under warnings, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said. He added that one of the prisons in the region is evacuating approximately 500 prisoners from the facility.

The fire continued to grow as the sun set, but Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said he believed crews were making progress.

He added, “The situation is still dynamic, and the fire remains a fire that is difficult to contain, even though we have the upper hand.”

Ed Fletcher, who works for Cal Fire’s statewide fire agency, told the BBC that this fire was different from the fires that broke out earlier this month. He added that the winds are not strong yet, and there are many crews trying to calm the fires.

“The weather is very dry and we know the winds will be strong later,” he said. “We’ll know more in a few hours.”

Mr. Fletcher noted that the area is not densely populated and that current winds are pushing the flames toward Castaic Lake, which acts as a buffer between the Castaic area — which has about 20,000 residents.

“If the lake jumps, the situation becomes much more dynamic,” he said.

A woman who evacuated her home told NBC 4 she was stuck on Interstate 5, California’s main transit route that runs through the state. Parts of the highway in the area were closed due to the fire.

“It looked like a cloud, but when I got closer, it looked like we were walking toward hell,” she said of the dark smoke and red flames she saw. “It was pretty terrifying to be honest with you.”

She admitted she was on edge after watching the Palisades and Eaton fires burn nearby, killing at least 28 people and destroying more than 10,000 homes and businesses.

“I don’t know why they keep showing up,” she said. “It’s definitely a scary time in this area.”

Dana Dirks, spokeswoman for the Angeles National Forest, noted that winds and dry trees have made fighting these recent fires more difficult.

“We don’t have a fire season in California. We have a fire year,” she said. “We’ve had wildfires in January before, but they were exacerbated by the Santa Ana winds. Wind is a big factor when we’ve had such a dry year.”

Rain is expected over the weekend in the area, which is welcome news to ease the fire risk. But the rainfall raises new concerns in the form of mudslides, floods and landslides.

Areas affected by recent fires are particularly vulnerable because burned land is not absorbent. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Monday to help free up resources to prepare for flooding and slides after fires.

Thousands of kits were filled Sandbags for affected areas.

Samantha Granville contributed to this report.