AIRAN SCRUBY
Staff Writer
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Anela Holck/Asst. Photo Editor
Smoke filled the air and fire filled the news last week, as the first major wildfire of the season smoldered a few miles away from Pepperdine’s Malibu campus.
The Westlake Village graduate campus closed Thursday as a precautionary measure. Campus Director Leslie Haggard said they were concerned for the safety of the faculty and students traveling to the satellite campus.
Of four classes canceled, one was moved to Pepperdine’s Encino campus. An executive program to be held in Westlake Village Friday was also transferred to Encino.
The Topanga Fire has burned more than 24,000 acres since it began Wednesday, Sept. 28, in Chatsworth. Two other fires, spurred by Santa Ana winds and fueled by unusually tall grass and shrubs, also burned about 2,000 acres last week.
Though red flag warnings were in effect due to a forecast of wind gusts through Wednesday, Pepperdine Fire Capt. Cash Reed said area firefighters had the fires well controlled.
The first blaze to char the southland was the Topanga Fire. Smoke could be seen rising from behind the hills around campus, and some students were evacuated from their off-campus apartments, including the Malibu Canyon Apartments.
The fire, which burned near the Ventura County Line in Los Angeles County, could have caused severe damage in Malibu Canyon and beyond if it had jumped Highway 101, something firefighters managed to prevent, Reed said.
Pepperdine firefighters were ready to combat the flames, protecting both the university and nearby Cottontail Ranch. Reed said firefighters used flame retardant foam and barricade shells to protect buildings and areas susceptible to fire.
Also key to the protection of Pepperdine’s campus is the 200-foot brush clearance that surrounds most of the school.
The Topanga Fire, also called the Chatsworth Fire, is now 100 percent contained. Reed said many firefighting units had already been demobilized and sent home.
Though three family homes were destroyed, and two more were damaged, along with several outbuildings and commercial properties, the loss of life and property was minimized by the safety precautions taken by homeowners and firefighters, Reed said.
In nearby Burbank, a second fire burned, and though not as large or uncontrolled as the Topanga fire, its location made it a threat to many homes in the area. The fire is more than 70 percent contained, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Web site.
The third fire ignited in San Bernardino National Forest due to a vehicle’s mechanical failure.
The Thurman Fire began Thursday, Sept. 29, and spread rapidly due to an abundance of fuel and steep terrain that made the task of controlling the blaze difficult.
According to the National Forestry’s Incident Information System, the fire occurred about five miles east of Redlands and eight miles south of Big Bear Lake.
Six firefighters were injured while trying to control the flames, but the situation is now largely under control, and the Highway 38 remains open.
Reed said this year’s fire season, which lasts from May to late December, has the potential to be severe.
Heavy rains last year mean tall grass and thick, dead brush this summer, and the yearly Santa Ana winds have dried the flammable growth to a dangerous degree.
Risk of arson is also a problem during this season. Reed said the Santa Ana winds and extra news coverage prompt arsonists to seek attention by risking property damage and the lives of others.
Though the burns now under control may help to prevent fires that begin in similar areas from spreading this season, Reed said nature is impossible to predict when it comes to fire.
“It’s a waiting game,” Reed said. “We know when the fire season is coming and we prepare. Our job is to protect Pepperdine, especially when the fire is this close.”
10-06-2005