When fire threatened a California university, the school says it knew what to do
MALIBU, California — The wildfire alert came in the middle of the night as some students in Southern California prepared for their final exams and others woke up in their dorms.
But instead of running from the impending fire, some 3,000 Pepperdine University students headed to two buildings in the heart of the 336-acre campus on the coast of Malibu, California, to take shelter.
The protocol at the Christian university with a picturesque view of the Pacific Ocean may seem at odds with logic to those accustomed to scenes elsewhere in wildfire-stricken California, where thousands of residents are evacuating fire zones in long caravans of cars.
For years, the university, located in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, has had a special protocol in place because of its unique terrain and design that requires students to be taken to a library and campus center where they can get food and water and basic needs. needs met, said Michael Friel, a spokesman for Pepperdine.
The school began preparing students and community members at the beginning of the academic year for what to do in the event of a wildfire during new student orientation. When the fire broke out Monday evening, school officials began communicating with students around 11 p.m. and activated the shelter-in-place protocol about two hours later, spreading the word through text messages, email, social media and by to go door to door.
“Many of our students were woken up by a knock on the door, and we made sure they were aware of the conditions and that we could get them out of harm’s way,” Friel said.
The Franklin Fire quickly moved south, jumping the famous Pacific Coast Highway and stretching to the coast, where large houses line the beach. Thousands of Southern California residents were under evacuation orders and warnings on Tuesday, with more than 8,100 homes and other buildings threatened.
County fire officials estimated that more than 9 square kilometers of trees and dry brush had burned under dangerous conditions, fueled by dry, gusty winds. Santa Ana wind which were expected to last until Wednesday.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
Ryan Song, a teaching assistant at Pepperdine University, said he noticed the power going out in his dorm late Monday. When he looked out the window, he saw a huge pink glow.
“I thought, ‘This is too bright,’ and it got bigger and bigger,” the 20-year-old junior said. “I immediately went outside and saw that it was a real fire.”
Song and the other assistants went door to door to get students out. Most were calm and followed instructions, he said; some who were scared ran to their cars to get off campus.
Song said he spent the next few hours racing back and forth between his dorm and the main campus in the dark to make sure no one was left behind.
Pepperdine University officials said the campus was designed with fire safety in mind in the 1960s because of the region’s experience with wildfires. Buildings were grouped together and covered with stucco, while roads were constructed to make it easy for firefighters to get in, said Phil Phillips, the school’s executive vice president.
In the 1990s, campus officials worked with the Los Angeles County Fire Department to develop a safety plan, and authorities said the safest option for students would be to remain on campus. The school is doing everything it can to clean brushes and has a plan to reduce smoke in shelter areas by taping doors shut and using air filters, he said.
The nearby stretch of Pacific Coast Highway can also become congested during an emergency, Phillips said, such as during the deadly disaster. Woolsey fire in 2018.
“What you don’t want is to get stuck,” says Phillips, who has been on campus for 30 years – including as a student – and says he has seen seven fires. “Protecting our students and ensuring their safety is a moral obligation for us, so we take it very seriously.”
On Tuesday, heavy smoke from the Franklin Fire, which was burning northeast of the school, billowed across the campus 30 miles (47 kilometers) west of Los Angeles, canceling classes and postponing final exams. The fire brigade had not yet brought any part of the fire under control on Tuesday afternoon.
The campus was scorched, but no injuries were reported, and only one structure was possibly minimally damaged thanks to the hard work of firefighters and the cooperation of students, faculty and others on campus, Friel said.
Jim Gash, the college’s president, said Tuesday afternoon that the campus was no longer under threat.
“I am grateful that through prayer, preparation and cooperation, our Pepperdine community safely navigated the challenges of the past twelve hours,” Gash said in a statement. “Our prayers continue to go out to the Malibu community.”
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Taxin reported from Santa Ana, California. Associated Press writer Julie Watson in San Diego contributed to this report.