San Francisco, Oct 14 (TIWN) Firefighters have continued to contain the blazing wildfires in Southern California, while some evacuation orders have been lifted for residents.

The National Weather Service said the winds, though weaker, were still expected to produce gusts up to 30 mph, creating dangerous fire conditions in the dry, wooded hills of northwest Los Angeles.

The Saddleridge fire that erupted Thursday night in the Sylmar neighborhood had consumed more than 7,500 acres by Saturday and was only 19% contained.

The continued threat prompted authorities to maintain Red Flag Warnings into Saturday evening for most of the threatened Southern California areas. 

While a widespread evacuation order was lifted in Saturday morning in some areas where the fire had receded, thousands more residents, particularly in the Sylmar and Porter Ranch neighborhoods, were still unable to return to their homes.

In some cases, authorities allowed people back into their homes for only five minutes to retrieve such items as important documents, medication and small pets.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Gov. Gavin Newsom have issued emergency declarations because of the fire.