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Lake Fire Lake Hughes Santa Clarita
The quickly-moving Lake Fire north of Santa Clarita near Lake Hughes burned over 10,000 acres, destroying several structures. Photo by Austin Dave.

UPDATE: Fire Officials Downsize Lake Fire By Nearly 3,000 Acres

After previously reporting that the Lake Fire had scorched over 17,000 acres of land, fire officials have downsized the fire by nearly 3,000 acres due to “improve infrared mapping.”

UPDATE (10 a.m. Saturday): Officials with the Los Angeles County Fire Department announced Saturday morning that “improved infrared mapping” of the Lake Fire showed that the blaze had burned less acreage than originally estimated.

As of 10 a.m. Saturday, the latest update on the Lake Fire listed the blaze as burning 14,714 acres, with containment remaining at 12 percent.

Original Post: At 7 p.m. Friday, just after a flare-up on the northwest side of the blaze, officials with the Los Angeles County Fire Department posted an update regarding the current status of the Lake Fire, which began just north of Santa Clarita in Lake Hughes on Wednesday.

As of Friday evening, the blaze had reached 17,482 acres in size, destroying 21 structures, damaging four more, and threatening over 5,400 as it grew.

Containment remained the same as it did earlier Friday morning at 12 percent, and officials project that they will reach full containment by Sept. 2.

While over 1,500 personnel are currently battling the Lake Fire, no firefighter or civilian injures have been reported as a result of the blaze.

The Lake Fire was first reported at about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday near Lake Hughes Road and Pine Canyon Road in Lake Hughes just north of Santa Clarita, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

“The area of the fire has not burned for decades,” said L.A. County Fire Department Chief Darryl Osby in a press conference on Thursday.

The Lake Fire has “extreme fire behavior” with witnesses reporting possible fire tornados in the area of the blaze, according to Fire officials.

See Related: Lake Fire In Lake Hughes Breaks Out Near Pine Canyon, Evacuations Ordered 

The first report was that the fire had scorched 50 acres and within minutes the fire had exploded to around 450 acres sending smoke visible as far as Venice Beach.

By 8 p.m. Wednesday, the Lake Fire had erupted to approximately 10,000 acres prompting the evacuations of around 100 homes in the Lake Hughes area, according to Fire officials.

ANF Fire Chief Robert Garcia said the Lake Fire is burning near the area of the 2013 Powerhouse Fire, which burned over 30,000 acres.

The Lake Fire is burning on the opposite side of Lake Hughes Road from the previous Powerhouse Fire, according to Garcia.

Lake Fire Road Closures as of 9 a.m. Friday:

  • Lake Hughes Road remains closed near Ridge Route Road in Castaic
  • Three Points at Pine Canyon Road
  • Old Ridge Route Road from Highway 138 to Pine Canyon
  • San Francisquito Road from Stater Lane to Spunky Canyon Road

Lake Fire Evacuations as of 7 p.m. Friday:

Evacuations due to the Lake Fire are in place in the area of Lake Hughes Road west of Pine Canyon Road and south of Dry Gulch Road.

Lake Fire evacuations are also in place east of Ridge Route Road, west of Lake Hughes Road and South of Highway 138.

Later Friday afternoon, officials also called for evacuations north of Avenue D/Hwy 138, south of Avenue A, west of 150th Street West, and east of 200th Street West.

Those evacuating because of the Lake Fire can go to:

Highland High School 39055 25th Street West Palmdale, CA

The Castaic Sports Complex at 31230 Castaic Rd, Castaic, CA

Residents are expected to stay in cars. Small animals are welcome however will remain in cars. No Animal Care services available

Animal Evacuations Centers:

  • Castaic Animal Care Center 31044 Charlie Canyon Road Castaic, 91384
  • Lancaster Animal Care Center 5210 W Avenue I, Lancaster, 93536
  • Palmdale Animal Care Center 38550 Sierra Highway, Palmdale, 93440
  • AV Fairgrounds (Large Animals Only) 2551 W Avenue H, Lancaster 93536


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UPDATE: Fire Officials Downsize Lake Fire By Nearly 3,000 Acres

One comment

  1. Damn “officials” can’t get ANYTHING right! These guys, Covid 19 “officials”, political “officials”! What’s up with that all over the place?

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About Michael Brown

Michael Brown has lived in Santa Clarita his whole life. Graduating from Saugus High School in 2016, he continued to stay local by attending The Master’s University, where he achieved a Bachelor's Degree in Communication. Michael joined KHTS in January of 2018 as a news intern, and has since gone on to become the News Director for the KHTS Newsroom. Since joining KHTS, Michael has covered many breaking news stories (both on scene and on air), interviewed dozens of prominent state and federal political figures, and interacted with hundreds of residents from Santa Clarita. When he is not working, Michael enjoys spending time with his family, as well as reading any comic book he can get his hands on.