Beyond the security gates of the Serra Retreat area of Malibu lies a small enclave of luxury homes, many of them gated or walled off.
The area is home to celebrities such as Patrick Dempsey and, at one time, Mel Gibson.
The Franklin Fire devastated the area, but the extent of the damage is still unclear. A house with a pool was almost demolished; another was little more than a chimney and a pile of smoldering rubble.
Residents said some cars were also damaged and some animals died in the fire.
Riding his electric bike while checking houses, Alec Gellis, 31, said he and a friend, Abel Rodgers, 33, stayed behind to save their house and protect those of their neighbors.
Gellis said he was resting in his room around 11 p.m. when he started hearing people shouting and honking. He said he went out to see what all the commotion was about.
“I smelled smoke,” he said. “The sky was red and the entire canyon was lit up on the other side. …We were surrounded by flames.
“Literally everywhere you looked there was fire,” he said.
He and Rodgers sprang into action, grabbing a hose connected to a machine that pumped water from the pool and began soaking everything.
“The bushes, the perimeter, just soaking everything in,” Gellis said. “Monsoon style.”
He said he went to neighbors' yards and helped put out specific fires. He said firefighters responded quickly, but were also busy trying to extinguish the flames.
For five hours, Gellis and Rodgers said, they put out the flames and repeatedly soaked anything that could catch fire.
Gellis said embers were flying everywhere; He wore glasses in an effort to protect his eyes.
It was the second time he had to stay behind in the middle of a fire. He said the first time was when the Woolsey fire occurred. That 2018 fire was also a windswept inferno. Destroyed 1,600 structures from Westlake Village to Malibu.
The Franklin Fire was reported a few minutes before 11 p.m. Monday along Malibu Canyon Road in the hills north of Pepperdine University. Fanned by strong Santa Ana winds, the fire advanced at a ferocious pace, exploding to more than 2,700 acres as of Tuesday afternoon without containment.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said during a news conference Tuesday morning that a “minimal number” of homes had been destroyed, although he did not have an exact count of damaged structures. He urged residents to limit the use of lawn sprinklers to maintain water pressure for firefighters.
Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.
