At least eight buildings have been destroyed and seven others have been damaged in Malibu, California, as a result of the wind-whipped wildfire that has roared through the area.
The Franklin Fire had grown to nearly 4,000 acres Wednesday afternoon with 7% containment, after it grew 600 acres Wednesday morning, the city of Malibu said in an update. No deaths or injuries have been linked to the fire. The blaze, which broke out Monday night local time, has prompted authorities to issue evacuation orders to around 20,000 people in Los Angeles County.
However, conditions were beginning to improve Wednesday, offering a respite and an opportunity to firefighters.
“Yesterday, around the Franklin Fire, we had gusts in the 35 to 50 mph range. Now, they’re down to the 10 to 20 mph range,” said Ryan Kittell, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Oxnard. He added that a weakening cold front was moving into the region with the potential to bring some light rain Thursday.
But Kittell said he expects more humid onshore winds from the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, as well, which could stir embers.
“Humidities will still be elevated, but wind kind of trumps everything,” Kittell said. “It’s something to keep aware of.”
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said at a news conference Wednesday morning that a containment line was set Tuesday night.
“The weather has changed significantly, so we did take advantage of those higher relative humidities and the lower temperatures and the decreased winds last night. … We’re going in the right direction,” he said.
The cause of the fire is unknown and remains under investigation.
Evacuees from Malibu include several famous figures who live in the sought-after beachside community. Actor Dick Van Dyke, who turns 99 on Friday, wrote on Facebook that he and his wife, Arlene, escaped safely on Tuesday with their animals, except a cat named Bobo.
Singer Cher also evacuated to a hotel Monday night with her pets, publicist Liz Rosenberg told The New York Times.
Students at Pepperdine University in Malibu were instructed to shelter in place in the campus library and other buildings overnight Monday and Tuesday.
“We were supposed to be taking finals this week, and with the students that I talked to, we’d much rather be taking finals than living through this experience,” Rachel Flynn, a Pepperdine senior, told NBC Los Angeles.
“Tonight, it’s on Dresher Hill, which is the opposite side of campus than it was last night,” she said Tuesday. “So that’s definitely concerning for me, because that’s where my dorm is located. That’s where my car is parked. I’m watching the flames expand and grow.”
Flynn said some students put couches together as makeshift beds.
link