Nearby Pepperdine University issued a campus-wide shelter-in-place order as firefighters struggled to extinguish a rapidly spreading wildfire in Malibu early Tuesday morning.
The fire, known as the Franklin Fire, was reported just before 11 p.m. along Malibu Canyon Road and north of Francisco Ranch Road in the hills north of Pepperdine. The fire, fanned by strong Santa Ana winds, scorched about 100 acres just before midnight and was moving fast, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
Aerial footage broadcast by local news stations early Tuesday showed palm trees swaying in strong winds and flames consuming the hills. The National Weather Service reported sustained winds of up to 45 mph and gusts up to 65 mph. The cause of the fire was unknown.
“All community members on the Malibu campus are directed to shelter in place at the Tyler Campus Center or the Payson Library,” Pepperdine shared on X Tuesday at 1:09 p.m.
A five-mile stretch of Pacific Coast Highway has been closed east of Coral Canyon Road and west of Carbon Canyon Road, the city of Malibu said on social media.
The Los Angeles County Emergency Operations Center has launched an emergency website regarding the Franklin Fire. As of 1 a.m., the mandatory evacuation had expanded to a large area of Malibu from the hills to the beach, including Malibu Village Mall, Malibu City Hall, and homes along Malibu Road and Malibu Colony Road. .
Authorities have issued mandatory evacuation orders for the following areas:
South of Piuma Road Pacific Coast North of Hiwa East of Las Bergenes Road and Malibu Road West of Carbon Beach Terrace
Evacuation advisories include the following:
East of Las Vergenes, between Mulholland Highway on the north and Piuma Road on the south, between Stunt Road on the north and Las Flores on the south, east of Carbon Beach Terrace, west of Old Malibu Road, on PCH From the north to the evacuation boundary line
Around 1 a.m. Tuesday, local news outlets reported that the fire had moved into the Serra Retreat area and was threatening the building. The community is approximately three-fifths of a mile northwest of Malibu Pier and two-thirds of a mile northeast of Malibu Village Mall. In addition to the scenic Catholic retreat and conference center, there are also private homes.
The National Weather Service has issued a warning of “particularly hazardous conditions” for large areas of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, which will last through Tuesday afternoon. Wind gusts of up to 130 mph are possible, relative humidity is expected to be surprisingly low, and vegetation is expected to be extremely dry.
The National Weather Service said strong and damaging winds from the north and northeast are expected to peak around sunrise Tuesday and continue into late Tuesday morning within the Franklin fire area.
Relative humidity levels dropped to as low as 9% just before midnight.
This is the second time this fire season that the Bureau of Meteorology has issued a red flag for “particularly dangerous conditions”. The last warning was issued on Nov. 5, the day after a wildfire broke out in Ventura County, destroying more than 240 buildings fanned by high winds. It was the third deadliest wildfire in Southern California since 2013.
Dry, strong Santa Ana winds are caused by an high-pressure system in the Great Basin that forces air through valleys and passes and onto low-pressure coasts.
Malibu and the neighboring communities of Thousand Oaks, Oak Park, and Agoura Hills were severely damaged by the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which destroyed more than 1,600 buildings and burned approximately 97,000 acres.
This story will be updated.
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