The Bryson Fire threatened 7,221 structures near Malibu, and none were lost

The Bryson Fire left 7,221 structures near Malibu threatened as of Friday evening, Oct. 16, yet county officials reported on Saturday, Oct. 17, that no structures had been lost or damaged. The brush fire ignited shortly before 5 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 15, near Campus Vernon Kilpatrick on Encinal Canyon Road, pushed along by gusting Santa Ana winds, and the Los Angeles County Fire Department issued a second alarm as it grew. By Sunday, Oct. 18, it was 74% contained and crews were mopping up hot spots.

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A fire that started in largely inaccessible terrain west of Mulholland Highway, with homes, a museum and a university campus within reach, ended its first weekend without a single building lost. Weather was expected to turn more favorable for firefighters, who worked the steep ground with water- and retardant-dropping helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.

7,221 structures in range and a loss count of zero

The threatened-structure figure comes from City News Service reporting carried by NBC Los Angeles, which states that 7,221 structures were still threatened as of Friday evening. Saturday evening’s update from county officials recorded no structures lost or damaged and only minor injuries to fire personnel. Fire Chief Anthony Marrone had said on Friday morning that nothing had been damaged or destroyed, and that remained true through the weekend. As the report uses the word, “threatened” describes buildings the fire could have reached, not buildings it harmed.

FOX 11 Los Angeles reported that more than 7,000 nearby buildings were at one point in danger and that one firefighter suffered a minor injury and was taken to a local hospital in stable condition as a precaution. The station put the peak response at 721 personnel and 65 engines, backed by aircraft that included CL-415 Super Scoopers leased from Quebec. Cal Fire’s count on Saturday night, as relayed by NBC, was 715 personnel and 60 engines, and by Sunday morning the assignment had dropped to 200 personnel as the fire settled down.

Santa Ana winds, a red flag warning and power shutoffs

NBC4’s first-night report said a red flag warning covered most valleys and coasts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties until 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17. NBC4 meteorologist Shanna Mendiola noted gusts of 20 to 30 mph around 7:15 p.m. on Thursday and expected them to ease after sunset before rising again after sunrise on Friday. Los Angeles County Fire spokesperson Keith Navarre called Thursday’s conditions “vulnerable,” citing dry air and strong wind, and said of the dry fuel: “It makes it hard, and it makes the fire move faster through the dry fuel.”

Southern California Edison cut power under its Public Safety Power Shutoff program to reduce the chance of lines sparking fires in high winds. The utility canceled planned shutoffs on Saturday evening, and by Sunday it said every customer affected over the preceding days had been restored.

Evacuation orders, shelters and 38 youths moved to Sylmar

Road closures on the first night included Decker Road at Encinal Canyon Road, Mulholland Highway at Westlake Boulevard and Kanan Road at Mulholland Highway. Evacuation orders covered the immediate area, including Zuma and Trancas canyons, while residents in two further zones were told by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to stay alert and be ready to leave, and warnings stretched from near Malibu Road and Pacific Coast Highway to Leo Carrillo State Beach. All orders were lifted on Saturday when the red flag warning expired, and roads reopened, including Topanga Canyon Boulevard. CAL FIRE’s first incident update, posted at 6:36 p.m. on Oct. 15, listed the fire at 102 with 0% containment and cause under investigation, and a later update at 9:35 p.m. listed 200, near Encinal Canyon Road, with the Los Angeles County Fire Department as the administering agency. Neither page states a unit for the size figure.

The Los Angeles County Probation Department moved 38 youths from Campus Vernon Kilpatrick, a juvenile detention facility, to Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Sylmar, and said on Saturday evening that conditions were safe for their return. A Red Cross shelter at Agoura High School closed that evening, the Malibu Boys & Girls Club opened a Disaster Relief Center for students and families, and the Getty Villa closed Friday and Saturday “out of an abundance of caution, and to help keep surrounding roads clear for emergency responders.” Sheriff Robert Luna warned that plainclothes deputies were watching evacuated and blacked-out areas for burglars. Evacuee Susan Booker, who lost her home in the 2018 Woolsey Fire, said it was “really scary to see this happening again so close to the house.”

Cause, acreage and the figures that still disagree

Officials have not determined a cause. At the press conferences that followed, county Supervisor Lindsay Horvath, Fire Chief Anthony Marrone, Sheriff Robert Luna and Emergency Management Director Kevin McGowan updated residents, according to FOX 11. The size of the burn also varies by report: early estimates ran to at least 200 acres, while NBC’s Sunday account and FOX 11 both cite 146 acres after mapping. Containment differs as well. FOX 11’s account, updated on Oct. 17, described the perimeter as fully held, while NBC Los Angeles reported 74% containment on Sunday, Oct. 18. The containment figure here follows the later and more specific NBC report.

The record as of Oct. 18 is narrower than the weekend’s anxiety suggested: 7,221 structures were in range, a red flag warning had lapsed, every evacuation order was lifted, and county officials had logged zero buildings lost. Pepperdine University, about 8 miles from the start point, said the fire did not threaten its Malibu campus. Cal Fire’s incident pages and the county’s later updates will decide whether that zero stands as the final tally.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.

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