Thousands of evacuees return home amid Malibu Franklin Fire – NBC Los Angeles

Firefighters continue making progress on the Franklin Fire in Malibu, which is now 30% contained after burning more than 4,000 acres.

And while the cause of the fire is still under investigation, some evacuation orders have been lifted. 

The Franklin Fire started Monday night and has since burned 4,037 acres, destroyed 12 structures including six homes, and damaged 11 structures including 10 homes.

More than 3,700 people have now been allowed to go back home after evacuating for several days.

Meanwhile, another 1,600 people are still out of their homes.

“We went back yesterday, our house is fine, we’re just exhausted and we’re filled with PTSD right now because this is reminding us of 2018” Cheryl Rivin, a Malibu resident, said.

In 2018, the Woolsey Fire burned nearly 100,000 acres in Los Angeles County and Ventura County, including Malibu. The fire killed three people and destroyed more than 400 single-family homes and 670 structures.

Local officials said that just days ago, they were petrified that this fire would destroy the civic center and the nearby houses.

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies were at several checkpoints along Pacific Coast Highway to verify the IDs of the homeowners.

Malibu mayor Doug Stewart said firefighters are well aware of the chance of another round of Santa Ana winds hitting the area. 

A top priority is making sure there are no remaining embers that could spark another fire.

According to Cal Fire, the fire activity remained minimal overnight with no significant growth. Firefighters continue working to put out remaining hot spots.

The fire continues to smolder in steep and very dangerous terrain. Aerial suppression efforts in those areas have been successful in keeping the fire subdued.