The flames spread to 3200 hectares within two hours on Wednesday in a hilly area near Castaic Lake, around 56 kilometers from Los Angeles. 

Santa Ana winds fuel fires
Like the fires in the Los Angeles metropolitan area and in the suburb of Altadena, the fires around Castaic Lake were also fueled by dry and strong Santa Ana winds.

"I just pray our house doesn't burn down," one man told station KTLA as he packed his car. Television showed footage of police driving through neighborhoods and telling people to leave the affected areas.

Prison with around 500 inmates evacuated
County Sheriff Robert Luna said the Castaic Correctional Facility was also under an evacuation order. About 500 inmates would be moved to a neighboring facility. Luna told radio station KCAL9 that around 4,600 inmates would remain there in other prisons in the area. However, buses would be on standby should the situation change and the inmates need to be moved to another location.

Helicopters and airplanes (see video above) were used to fight the fire, dropping water and extinguishing agents. Firefighters and the Los Angeles County Forestry Department were also deployed.

There was no information on the cause of the fire. However, there were strong winds and extremely low humidity - weather conditions that favor the spread of fires. "All of this together is causing this fire to spread extremely quickly," said Brent Pascua from the Californian forestry and forest firefighting authority Cal Fire.

Meteorologist: Fire could become large
The fire is worrying, said meteorologist Daniel Swain. There is a possibility that the fire could reach into Ventura County, where vegetation is very dense, he said. "Unfortunately, this fire has the potential to grow very large under these conditions," Swain said.

At least 27 killed by fires in L.A.
Several large fires broke out around the Southern Californian metropolis almost two weeks ago, fanned by strong winds and spreading explosively. At least 27 people lost their lives and the two largest fires destroyed thousands of buildings.

Experts largely agree that climate change is massively increasing the risk and extent of extreme weather events. It usually rains in Southern California in January, but the region has not seen any significant rainfall for around eight months.

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