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STORY: :: Authorities say they have 'the upper hand'in the Hughes fire but blaze remains 'difficult':: January 22, 2025:: Santa Clarita, California::Anthony MarroneLos Angeles County Fire Chief “The Hughes fire is now estimated to be over 9,400 acres with 0% containment, with no structures reported damaged or destroyed. We have over 4,000 firefighting personnel assigned to the incident, and we had a very robust ground and air response to the incident that you see behind me.”“The National Weather Service has extended the red flag warning through 10 a.m. on Friday (January 24) for most of Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Light to moderate Santa Ana winds will continue tonight and into Thursday. (January 23) The situation remains dynamic and the fire remains a difficult fire to contain, although we are getting the upper hand.”::Robert LunaLos Angeles County Sheriff“Right now, The numbers that I have is that we have approximately 31,000 people who are affected by our evacuation orders. Another 23,000 that are impacted by evacuation warnings.”“We were able to put in tens of thousands of gallons of retardant on the south side of the fire because the fire was moving to the southwest. It was really the aircraft, in addition to all of those ground resources which allowed us to get the upper hand.”The Hughes Fire ignited near the Caustic Lake area and has already scorched an estimated 9,400 acres (38 square km) with 0% containment.Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone cited the Santa Ana winds as fueling the fire, which are expected to persist into Thursday (January 23).Sheriff Robert Luna reported that around 31,000 residents are under evacuation orders, with an additional 23,000 under evacuation warnings. He also noted that a facility at the Pitches Detention Center, housing approximately 476 inmates, had to be evacuated due to the fire.Two major wildfires continue to burn in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of Wednesday, the Eaton Fire, which has charred 14,021 acres (57 sq km) east of the city, was 91% contained. On the west side, the larger Palisades Fire has scorched 23,448 acres (95 sq km) and is 68% contained.