Firefighters have slowed the spread of a huge wildfire churning through rugged mountains north of Los Angeles where dangerous winds gained strength again.

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.

Hughes Fire initially started 10:53 a.m. Jan. 22 in Los Angeles County. It has burned 10,396 acres after being active for 33 hours. By Thursday evening, the fire crew succeeded in containing 36% of the wildfire. The cause is, however, still being investigated.

The Hughes, Sepulveda and Laguna fires are among the latest blazes for Southern California during a fourth consecutive day of red flag fire weather warnings.

Firefighters are responding to a brush fire in the Castaic area of Los Angeles County Wednesday morning, according to the Angeles National Forest.