Thousands warned to evacuate in Southern California as wildfires threaten Malibu

Homes have been destroyed in a wind-fueled wildfire that erupted in Malibu, California, Monday and prompted evacuations and a shelter-in-place order at Pepperdine University, officials said.

Around 20,000 people were under evacuation orders after the blaze, dubbed the Franklin Fire, broke out shortly before 11 p.m. Monday in the Malibu Canyon area, the Los Angeles County fire and sheriff’s departments said.

The fire occurred as Southern California was under red flag warnings because of strong Santa Ana winds, low humidity and dry vegetation. The fire has burned around 3,000 acres and was 0% contained by Tuesday evening, the state firefighting agency said.

Firefighters planned to take advantage of easing conditions overnight.

"We want to wake up tomorrow morning and make sure we at least start getting some containment,” Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said Tuesday. “Because remember, we’re going to be in a red flag alert through Wednesday at 8 pm.”

Marrone said "a small number" of homes have been destroyed and damaged, but an exact count was not yet known.

The city of Malibu said the blaze had spread across Pacific Coast Highway (also known as PCH and Highway 1) toward the Malibu Pier area — a tourist attraction beloved by locals and surfers.

An aerial view showed that seven structures have been destroyed and eight others damaged, Marrone said, but that is preliminary and a more accurate count is expected later.

No serious injuries or deaths have been reported, he said.

High winds of between 40 to over 60 mph continued in the Santa Monica Mountains on Tuesday, according to reports to the National Weather Service.

Local officials have said around 8,100 structures were in the affected area, most under evacuation warnings.

Evacuation orders were in place for points south of Piuma Road, east of east of Puerco Canyon Road and west of Los Flores Canyon Road; and also between the Pacific Ocean coastline and Tuna Canyon Park to the west of Tuna Canyon Road, Los Angeles County said. Other areas were under evacuation warnings. The county has a list of evacuation orders and a map online.

The Palisades Recreation Center was being used as an evacuation center. A large animal shelter was at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, the city of Malibu said on its website.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said Tuesday on X that the state had secured a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency “to help ensure the availability of vital resources to suppress the fire.”

The cause of the fire is not yet known. Marrone said it is under investigation by the fire department and arson investigators at the sheriff’s department.

Each year, around 10% to 15% of California’s wildfires are caused by arson, but higher temperatures and intensifying drought conditions — both results of climate change — are increasing the overall risk that blazes ignite and spread quickly.

“It’s undeniable, from my perspective, that global warming is causing more challenges for us,” Marrone said.

The red flag warnings in California affected around 12 million residents from San Luis Obispo to San Diego on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

Santa Ana winds caused gusts of around 60 mph and more in the Santa Monica Mountains, the weather service for the region said. The San Gabriel Mountains, east of Los Angeles, saw a gust recorded at 93 mph Monday night, and Boney Mountain in the Santa Monica range saw a gust of 76 mph Tuesday, it said.

Malibu is a beach city north of Los Angeles known for being home to many celebrities.

Actor and entertainer Dick Van Dyke said that he and his wife were among the evacuees.

There has been no significant structural damage to Pepperdine University, which is in Malibu off PCH, the university said.

But power went out to most of the 830-acre campus, and anyone choosing to remain there was told to shelter in either Campus Center or Payson Library because of the power situation.

Videos on social media showed orange flames visible outside school windows early Tuesday.

Fire came over a ridge on the north end of campus Tuesday afternoon and moved into some brush, the university said.

"The University is not aware of any significant structural damage at this time, and the EOC continues to closely monitor the situation," it wrote on X, referring to an emergency operations center.

Operations at the university were suspended Tuesday.

Southern California Edison, a primary utility provider in the area, has implemented power shutoffs for public safety because of the wildfire risk. Those outages affect more than 10,000 customers in Los Angeles County, nearly 9,000 in San Bernardino County and more than 2,000 in Kern County. Shutoffs are also in effect for much of Malibu, the city said.

All Malibu schools are closed through Thursday, the school district said Tuesday.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said her office is monitoring the fire. “Thank you to all first responders working to battle this blaze,” she wrote on X.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com