By now, you’ve likely heard about the brush fire that started in Malibu Canyon on Monday. However, the fire has since grown to over 3,000 acres with 0% containment. It’s causing dangerous conditions and triggering mandatory evacuation orders in parts of Southern California, according to authorities.
According to ABC News, about 1,500 firefighters have been deployed to help stop the spread of the fire. Unfortunately, the terrain and wind conditions have made it difficult to contain the fire, which has destroyed and damaged numerous structures and caused electricity, cell, and internet service outages.
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Firefighters Struggling to Contain Wind-driven Malibu Fire
To provide some context, CNN reported that at its peak, the fire consumed an area larger than five football fields in just one minute. Many residents were forced to flee their homes, some of which were completely destroyed.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone told the public that officials are unsure how the fire started, which has grown rapidly over the past few days.
“The L.A. County Fire Department and the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department are going to join forces with our arson investigators because it’s going to be critical that we learn why this fire started,” he said during a press conference Tuesday.
Marrone also stressed the importance of taking the fire—and its unpredictable nature—seriously.
“Up until this point, it’s been a wind-driven fire,” he said. “If the wind changes direction, we’re going to have the fire moving into new areas.”
