Firefighters made progress on the more than 10,000-acre Hughes Fire Friday, which sent thousands fleeing after sparking near the Los Angeles County community of Castaic. Some mandatory evacuation orders have been downgraded to warnings while containment of the wildfire rose over Thursday.

The fire threat remains critical in Southern California, where thousands of residents were under evacuation orders Wednesday as fire crews battled the out-of-control Hughes Fire near Castaic, a suburb in the foothills and mountains of northern Los Angeles County.

A fast-moving wildfire exploded to roughly 10,200 acres near the Los Angeles County community of Castaic Wednesday morning, prompting mandatory evacuation orders and road closures, authorities said.

Evacuation orders and warnings were issued to more than 31,000 people in the vicinity of two new wildfires north of Los Angeles on Wednesday.

As the sun began to set over Castaic Lake on Wednesday, the hills to the north and east were engulfed in flames, casting an eerie orange glow across the valley below.