Thousands of Southern California residents have been told to leave their homes as a new wildfire broke out north of Los Angeles, spreading over nearly 41 square kilometers (16 square miles) within hours.

The blaze, dubbed the Hughes Fire, is burning near the popular recreation area around Lake Castaic, about 64 kilometers (40 miles) from the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires, which still have not been fully contained since they broke out on January 7.

Mass evacuation orders

More than 31,000 people have been told to evacuate, while a further 20,000 were in areas affected by evacuation warnings, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said.

There have been no immediate reports of properties destroyed by the new fire.

Part of Highway 5, a major transport route, was closed temporarily, while authorities said continuing winds were heightening the fire danger.

NBC News journalist Jayson Campadonia told DW that wind gusts had fueled the spread of the fire and that these were not expected to die down for at least 24 hours.

He said that there was some containment of the fire but that firefighters feared this might be short-lived because of the high winds.

"Luckily it's mainly burning vegetation out there — dry grass," said Campadonia.

"There are homes in the area," he added. "There are big neighborhoods in the area, but it [the fire] is mainly keeping to the easy fuel and burning the dry brush out there." 

Two major blazes continue to burn

Firefighters have made progress in fighting two other wildfires in the Los Angeles area in recent days.

The Eaton Fire near Pasadena was said to be 95% contained as of Wednesday, while the Palisades Fire on the western edge of Los Angeles was nearly 70% under control.

More than 15,000 buildings have been destroyed or damaged by the Eaton and Palisades blazes, which have also killed at least 28 people. More than 20 people are still unaccounted for.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to withhold federal help for California until the state changes the way it manages its scarce water resources.

Climate scientists say that human-induced climate change largely through the burning of fossil fuels is contributing to making such blazes more frequent and serious.

tj/nm (dpa, AP)