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Malibu on Fire Again; Holloway Arrests: Three Suspects Jailed in Aruba; Consumer Alert: Trouble in Toyland
Aired November 24, 2007 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning. Check it out. Malibu is on fire again.
You are looking at live pictures of homes burning. Residents are being forced to get out, and they are being told to leave right now.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Also, there's no body, but the prosecutor says Natalee Holloway is dead and says he can prove it. New evidence to tell you about in this case, and the suspects arrested two years ago back in jail.
We're live in Aruba.
Hello to you all from the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia. This is Saturday morning, November the 24th. Hello to you all.
And my goodness. Those pictures out of Malibu, here we go again.
I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes. And I'm Betty Nguyen.
Take a look at these pictures. 10:00 a.m. here in Atlanta, 7:00 a.m. in southern California. Let's get you straight to this breaking news.
You see what it is right there. A new fire emergency this morning in southern California. Malibu, to be exact. People on the run from the flames as the fire moves into their neighborhoods.
HOLMES: About 100 homes near Malibu have been evacuated so far. We are looking at pictures here. And certainly, these are probably among those that firefighters knew were going to be in danger and had to be evacuated.
These are just amazing pictures. Some of the first we're seeing of these homes being burned.
This started a few hours ago, this fire itself, but it already burned more than 300 acres. Well, daybreak, as you're seeing here, starting to get some light out there. Making things a little easier to see this big fire.
Certainly this perspective here is not one you want to see. It just makes your heart hurt looking at these homes in fires. Santa Ana winds causing these fire to spread. That's certainly a big problem right now.
NGUYEN: Yes. Our Bonnie Schneider has more on the situation in southern California.
And Bonnie, we want to talk to you about these strong winds. We spoke with a fire captain a little bit earlier. He warned us that these flames were really traveling fast to neighborhoods, and there you see it, homes are on fire at this hour.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That's right. And the winds have actually picked up over the past hour. I've been watching them in Malibu Hills. Gusts went up from 49 to 52 miles per hour just in the past hour.
Looking at Google Earth just so you have a better perspective of where the fire is. You can see north of Malibu. Here's the area that we always talk about right here along the beach in Malibu. But then up in the hills in an area near Malibu State Park, Mesa Peak, this is where the fire is believed to have started.
And you mentioned the 300 acres currently burning right to the south of Malibu Lake. So it's this region here, about seven miles from the coast, that we're seeing the fire spread. And, of course, the winds coming from the northeast is spreading the fire in a southern direction. And that's what we're seeing right now.
In terms of wind, we still have a wind advisory for Los Angeles coast areas. And that does include downtown Los Angeles. But the coast is actually expected to get less intense winds than areas in the mountains and passes in and around Los Angeles County and further to the north as well.
You see this area here highlighted in orange. This is where we have high wind warnings, and the coastal areas is actually where we have wind advisories, where the winds aren't supposed to be as strong, though they are fierce indeed.
Let's take a closer look at some of the winds that we have currently in Malibu Hills -- 52-mile-per-hour gusts, fierce winds coming in out of the northeast now at 23 miles per hour. These winds are intensifying through the morning, they should peak at noon. And then after 3:00 today, start to diminish.
I'll have more on that coming up -- Betty, T.J.
NGUYEN: All right, Bonnie.
We're going to continue with this story because it is happening right now. You are looking at the live pictures.
Firefighters have moved in quickly. At least 160 are on the scene. And we have also seen helicopters fighting the fire from the air.
Let's get the latest on the ground from those firefighting efforts. Inspector Sam Padilla with the Los Angeles County Fire Department joins us on the phone.
Inspector, talk to me a little about what you know in regards to how this thing started.
Inspector Padilla, are you with us? All right.
We're going to try to get Inspector Sam Padilla on the phone with us.
We've also been speaking with Captain Mike Brown with the Los Angeles County Fire Department. And when we spoke with him about an hour, hour and a half ago, they had not found a cause to this fire, exactly how it started. But what we can tell you is that it has burned very, very quickly.
This fire pretty much flamed up around 3:30 West Coast time. And in the past, what, three, three and a half hours, it has burned some 300 acres.
It was moving into a neighborhood. And as you can see, it has started to burn homes. Several of them are on fire as we speak.
Now, this is, T.J., really just a bad deja vu, because, you know, this area, California, has just come off of huge wildfires that have burned so many homes out there causing a state of emergency.
HOLMES: Yes, dozens or so we saw just within the past month or so. And, I mean, hundreds of thousands of people had to be evacuated. They just went through all of this in southern California.
Several counties affected, but mass evacuations had people on the run. Even 14 people ended up dead in those fires we saw just a month ago. And now here we go again, this eerie picture.
And this isn't just showing us a field burning, some dry brush. This fire starting to threaten homes.
We are looking at a neighborhood here. These homes are right next to each other, on top of each other, and you can see individual fires, fully engulfed homes in these pictures that are just -- and they are tough to look at.
NGUYEN: Devastating, isn't it?
HOLMES: It is. It is.
NGUYEN: It's very devastating.
Well, let's get inspector Sam Padilla on the phone now. I believe we do have him. He's with the L.A. County Fire Department.
Inspector Padilla, talk to us about the situation that's happening right now in Malibu.
SAM PADILLA, INSPECTOR, LOS ANGELES CO FIRE: Well, this is another brushfire that is being pushed by the winds, as we refer to it, as a wind-driven fire. It started approximately at 3:30 this morning somewhere in the area of Mesa Peak Mountain and Corral Canyon.
This fire is being pushed southwest right now out of the northeast wind. We have over 100 homes that have been evacuated. We have right now the areas from Malibu Canyon Road all the way to Point Dune we're asking for evacuations.
NGUYEN: How many people are you talking about within that area?
PADILLA: Hundreds. Hundreds. Hundreds. Literally.
NGUYEN: OK. And this fire has moved very quickly. We were told a little bit earlier around 300 acres have burned. Has that increased?
PADILLA: Yes -- 400-plus.
NGUYEN: Four hundred-plus. Do you have any injuries at this time?
PADILLA: Not reported.
NGUYEN: And is it the Santa Ana winds that's really kicking this thing?
PADILLA: As I said earlier, it's a wind-driven fire, correct.
NGUYEN: And, you know, when we talk about fighting these fires, T.J. and I were just discussing the fact that you guys out there have had so much on your hands, especially in the past month dealing with fire after fire. This is just like deja vu all over again.
PADILLA: This is what we do.
NGUYEN: Are you exhausted? Are you better prepared? How are you treating this fire?
PADILLA: No, we're not -- we're -- any time we have red flag conditions here in southern California, Los Angeles County Fire always fills post positions, additional resources. This is no different than last month.
But you have to realize, whenever these fires are pushed by 70- mile-an-hour winds, it's like a blowtorch with a hairdryer behind it blowing it at your direction with fuel that is dried out, the humidity is down. Everything is against you at this point. We're basically fighting what's natural.
NGUYEN: We're watching now homes burn to the ground there in Malibu. This is an area that you have ordered those mandatory evacuations. So are you suspecting that people have already left their homes?
PADILLA: Absolutely. We're trying to evacuate.
What the sheriff's department -- the Los Angeles County sheriffs are in charge of evacuations. We give them the direction, and they do out the physical part of it.
We are hoping for the most that everyone did evacuate when possible. These homes that are -- that you see that are fully involved with fire right now, the fire doesn't have to be exactly right there at the edge. It could be an ember that has been blown -- up to a mile away in front of the fire an ember can land.
So the possibilities are there. As you can see some of the shots, there's not fire all around those homes but fire on those homes. And that could be from the embers that are burning.
NGUYEN: Yes, several homes that are just burning. And it is devastating to watch.
I know you say this is what you do, but I wanted to see if our producers can pull up some video a little bit earlier. I believe it was KABC which showed a helicopter dipping into a swimming pool to find water to put on these fires.
PADILLA: That's correct. That's one of our Fire Hawks. And it has the capability equipped with a snorkel to lift water out of a water source. And all these homes that are in this -- in these areas, we are required by Los Angeles County Fire to have a minimum of 5,000 gallons. So that for these reasons alone.
NGUYEN: And is it just because that the resources are just not there that you are having to resort to this? Here's that picture right there of a helicopter dipping down into a swimming pool to get enough water so that it can go and fight some of these fires.
PADILLA: Correct. It's not -- it's not only just the resources, but the front of the fire. These fires are so big, they're not just like a structure fire. They are miles long. And to put a fire engine every few feet is impossible.
What we do is we look at the priorities. And the priorities, of course, are life first and then property. So then we will place engines, as we call structure protection, in front of the fire, between the fire and these people's homes.
NGUYEN: The fire has burned some 400 acres, as you say. It's only been burning for about, what three, three and a half hours now, moving very, very quickly.
Are you calling in for additional resources?
PADILLA: Absolutely. Everything that we can get, we're calling in for.
NGUYEN: All right. Obviously, we're going to stay on top of this story, and hopefully you guys can get a handle on it. But at this point there's zero containment?
PADILLA: Absolutely.
NGUYEN: All right. Inspector Sam Padilla with the L.A. County Fire Department giving us the latest on the situation. They have their hands full. And yet again, we are watching the West Coast, at least parts of it, specifically in Malibu, burn.
This is an area that has seen enough fires, just to put it, you know, very pointedly, because they have been through fire after fire, at least along the West Coast, within the last month. And we've seen dozens of homes burn, and we are watching many more burn again this morning.
Firefighters say they are trying their best. They've called in for reinforcements, but these winds are just moving too quickly. As we heard Inspector Padilla tell us, they're moving at about 70 miles per hour at some of its highest rates, and so you can see how these embers can jump from one area to another.
And there you have a neighborhood on fire.
HOLMES: And he said up to a mile that this fire could be going and blow some embers to another home and catch another structure on fire.
Our Bonnie Schneider standing by, keeping an eye on these wind conditions, these Santa Ana winds.
And Bonnie, he used an interesting description there. He said, imagine, you are standing there with a fire and you have a hairdryer blowing that fire. And he said some 70 miles an hour.
I just thought that was a way everybody can understand exactly what they are up against out there.
SCHNEIDER: That's true, because it's not just the wind. It's the hot, dry wind that's blowing down the mountain. So when the wind comes down slope and it comes down the mountain, the air heats and compresses and gets warmer.
Now, we have to remember that this situation is a little bit different than what we experienced in October. Temperatures were warmer then. We had high temperatures in and around Los Angeles at 90 degrees.
Today they should stay in the 70s. And of course this morning it's still very cold because it's the early morning hours at 52 degrees for the temperature.
Fifty-two-mile-per-hour wind gusts, that's the latest report we have from Malibu Hills. That has gone up. And really, the next five hours will be very crucial, because I'm not looking at a decrease in wind speed until we get to midday in and around Los Angeles.
Then we'll start to see the winds diminish. But this region, here's Malibu. And notice the areas highlighted in orange. Once you get into the foothills and the passes, that's where the winds will be the most fierce, rather than the coast, of what we saw in the last fire.
So we'll be looking for the winds to continue to be strong for the next five hours or so.
HOLMES: That is not what they want to hear. But, like you said, they're going to be up against it for a little while here.
We're going to keep an eye on this story. Again, folks, the breaking story, as you see, those live pictures there out of Malibu. Here we go again. Structures on fire, homes on fire. Evacuations under way.
We are all over that story. We will continue to follow it and continue to update you right here on CNN. So don't go away from that.
We do have other important stories happening, developing stories.
We'll turn to the Natalee Holloway case. Yes, that case, that cold case now is hot again.
Three suspects in custody this morning in Aruba as part of the Natalee Holloway investigation. One of those three arrived on a transatlantic flight from the Netherlands last night. You're seeing him there. Investigators say there is important new evidence in this case, but they are being very careful not to reveal too much.
And CNN's Susan Candiotti live in Aruba for us.
And they are being very tightlipped about what they may or may not have and what this new evidence may be.
Hello to you, Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, T.J. Good morning to you from Aruba here.
Well, in part, prosecutors can't say too much because they are forbidden to do so by court rules. But there is some strategy at play here, too. They don't want to give away too much, tip their hand to the defense at this stage in the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI (voice over): Late Friday, Joran van der Sloot returned to Aruba from the Netherlands under police escort. Believed to be in the middle car, he was rushed out of the airport and back to jail.
On Monday, he is scheduled to appear before a judge in a closed- door jailhouse hearing. Authorities will ask a judge to hold Van der Sloot at least another eight days under suspicion of manslaughter in the death of Natalee Holloway.
HANS MOS, CHIEF PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, ARUBA: I think we have enough evidence to prove that the girl is not alive anymore.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): Even without a body?
MOS: Even without a body.
CANDIOTTI (voice over): Holloway was last seen leaving a bar with Van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers more than two years ago. In interviews, Van der Sloot denied accusations of rape and murder and said he regretted leaving Holloway alone on a beach.
JORAN VAN DER SLOOT, SUSPECT: At that moment in time, for me, it wasn't the wrong thing. I mean, it's not something a real man would do. It's not normal. It's not right at all.
MOS: It was the night that he was involved in this case. He has his own truth, and we think our truth and the real truth is other than his truth.
CANDIOTTI: Earlier Friday, a judge oversaw separate jailhouse appearances for two other suspects, Deepak and Satish Kalpoe, who have also denied harming Holloway. The judge ruled there's enough new so- called incriminating evidence to detain the brothers eight days for more interrogations.
Defense attorneys weren't happy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What new evidence? There is no evidence. They don't have (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
CANDIOTTI: The chief prosecutor won't reveal what the new evidence is. CNN has learned a new team of Dutch and Aruban investigators have been recreating cell phone transmissions and text messages among the suspects after Holloway disappeared. Discrepancies allegedly were found.
MOS: We used state-of-the-art technology in reviewing this case. That's clear. It would be sad if we didn't do that. So that's what happened. We used state-of-the-art stuff from the Netherlands and brought in her to analyze the whole investigation again.
CANDIOTTI: Authorities say information initially was improperly analyzed or overlooked. The chief prosecutor says by year's end, he hopes to decide whether to try the three young men for manslaughter. If found guilty, they'd face 15 years in prison.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. That was our Susan Candiotti reporting there for us.
And as you are seeing, as we are continuing to follow other news this morning, we are keeping that picture up on the right side of your screen there just showing you the pictures of what's happening in Malibu. So we're not going to go too far away from that story, but still, we're going to stick with the Natalee Holloway story. And our Susan Candiotti on standby for us there in Aruba, just hearing that.
What's next, Susan, in this case? We have three suspects back in jail now. What happens to them now?
CANDIOTTI: Well, on Monday, there will be a court appearance -- or actually a jailhouse appearance for Joran van der Sloot. He must appear before a judge, and prosecutors will present some of the new evidence to a judge and ask for more time so that they can keep him in jail for another eight days.
And then next week, if they need more time, they'll go back and ask the judge for more. They'll keep doing this.
But investigators and prosecutors do say they want to wrap this up by the end of the year. There is a statute of limitations on prosecuting this case, but theoretically, they could keep asking for more time, but the court would have to approve it. Of course, investigators do say that whatever happened to Natalee Holloway, they think it was not intentional. They think it was an accident.
Natalee Holloway's family, as well as the Van der Sloots and the Kalpoes, simply want a resolution of this case one way or another -- T.J.
HOLMES: Yes. We know they certainly do. It's been two years now this case has been going on.
Susan Candiotti for us in Aruba.
Susan, thank you so much.
And a little earlier this morning, I spoke to Aruba's chief prosecutor in this case, asked him why the three suspects, why they arrested them now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOS: The (INAUDIBLE) has to be taken, and we promised the suspect to do that by the end of the year, by the 31st of December. The new evidence we gained was evidence that was so important that we thought it was necessary to re-arrest these suspects to confront them with it, because if we wouldn't have them in custody, we wouldn't be able to confront them with this material because they will not come to the police office voluntarily.
They will say, I stay at home, you're not going to take me with you. Well, that's exactly what we wanted to, question them, and to confront them with each other's stories and with the new evidence we have. And we think the evidence is important, and so important enough to have them re-arrested. If we make the final decision and when we make that final decision, that decision will be taken within a few weeks.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Of course, a lot of talk about that new evidence, exactly what it is. We just don't know. They are holding their cards close to the chest right now, but the chief prosecutor says he's actually not allowed to give us those details just yet. So we will be standing by waiting to hear what the new evidence may be.
NGUYEN: We're also continuing to follow the Malibu fires. As you can see, the fire is burning very brightly there. A lot of acreage covered, some 300-plus.
In fact, the latest word from an inspector with the L.A. County Fire Department says now this fire has burned at least 400 acres. Many homes are burning to the ground at this hour.
We are going to stay on top of this story and bring you the new developments just as soon as we get them.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fire is much, much larger now. I just saw it flash on the TV screen, and it's amazing how much it's changed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Indeed, it's amazing how much it's changed since we spoke with that I-Reporter about an hour and a half ago. Since then, the fire has burned some 400 acres.
This is in Malibu, California. We're continuing to watch this wildfire that is just burning out of control, being pushed by Santa Ana winds that are gusting up to 70 miles per hour at times. And homes are indeed burning to the ground. We have seen several of them on fire. And firefighters are just having quite a time trying to get a handle on this.
So far, there is no containment at this hour. But we're going to keep a watch of the fires burning. We're going to keep pictures up for you throughout this newscast as we dip in and dip out as news develops.
HOLMES: We'll turn now -- other news certainly on the minds of a lot of folks right now, certainly a lot of parents. Toys. Everybody is starting to do that holiday shopping.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: Well, shopping for toys this holiday season, not exactly fun and games. You've got the recalls, you've got the lead paint, you've got China.
NGUYEN: Paint -- yes. And they are taking toys off shelves, making sure we don't get those shipments. Well, some parents are hoping to avoid trouble in toyland by looking for the "Made in the USA" label.
Here's CNN's Fredricka Whitfield.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A child's toy chest suddenly backs Pandora's box this holiday season. The massive recalls have altered the shopping lists of parents like Kathy Sidwell.
KATHY SIDWELL, MOTHER: My daughter had Aqua Dots. And I just realized that they are now not safe. So -- she loves them, which is too bad. But, yes, I'm definitely paying more attention to where the toys are made.
WHITFIELD: Target store manager Tom Stanley tried to help one frustrated buyer.
TOM STANLEY, MANAGER, TARGET: I had a guest come in to our store inquiring about toys that were made in the USA, and him and I were walking the building trying to find different toys that he could purchase for his son that actually were made in the United States of America. Most of the toys we found yesterday were made overseas.
WHITFIELD: The ones that aren't? Board games like Monopoly, Battleship, Scrabble and Candy Land are all made in the U.S., a are other classics like Wiffle Ball, Crayola Crayons and the original Slinky.
Independent toy store owner Steve Ricks proudly showcases American-made toys here.
STEVE RICKS, TOY STORE OWNER: Dripstik. A mother of five invented this. She makes it here in the United States.
A dress-up line called A Wish Comes True. Potholder kits.
This game is over 100 years old, Rook. Zip Lines (ph) called Fun Rides Flying Turtle. Trains. These are maple.
WHITFIELD: Lots of parents are counting on merchants being selective.
SIDWELL: I come in here because I know that everything here is always good. Good, creative toys and, you know, they do a good job of picking out their merchandise.
WHITFIELD: "Parenting" magazine is helping, too.
CAMILLE CHATTERJEE, TOY EDITOR, "PARENTING" MAGAZINE: On parenting.com we decided to post a list of "Made in the USA" toys because we're overwhelmingly hearing from readers that they are concerned about the toys that they are buying for their kids this season.
WHITFIELD: Another Web site to find American made, fatbraintoys.com. Here you'll find Dotto (ph) Cube Building Blocks, Fractiles, which are magnetic tiles, and a spinning gyroscope.
From the Internet to small independent stores, the push to buy American is reaching new heights, giving another look at old made in the USA classic like the Arrowcopter, while at the same time demanding all toys are safe.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And this is the story we are following this morning, the breaking story, a story being told in pictures. This is Malibu, southern California, once again on fire.
We have been watching these pictures for the past few hours now. Fire has been going in Malibu. Well, some of those embers have been blowing. These flames are being fanned by these strong up to 70-mile- per-hour Santa Ana winds.
Some of those embers have been traveling and landing on homes. And we have seen several homes on fire this morning.
We're told by authorities there, fire officials, that at the least 400 acres now certainly on fire and zero percent contained is the word we're getting now. Mandatory evacuations are under way in several areas, hundreds of people, we're told, being evacuated. At this point, no injuries to report, however.
NGUYEN: Well, you know, a lot of people that are waking up and watching this, especially the students on the campus of Pepperdine University, one I-Reporter wrote in it just seemed like a bad joke. They were just here about a month ago when some two-dozen wildfires tore across southern California's landscape there.
I know you remember it because we were all over the story. Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated from their homes, 14 people died in those wildfires. And here we go yet again.
More wildfires have started up. This time in Malibu. And more homes are burning to the ground at this hour. Some 400-plus acres are on fire.
And we are continuing to watch this. In fact, there are folks in Pepperdine who are watching it very closely.
HOLMES: Jerry Derloshon is one official out there with Pepperdine University. Pepperdine, of course, was in our news coverage before, the last go-around of fires out there in southern California where students had to be on standby. Some on the run even. Had to be evacuated and had to be moved to certain areas because of the threat of the fires.
Well, here we go again in Malibu. Pepperdine students there once again having issues with fires.
Jerry Derloshon, you are on the line with us here. What is happening at the university? How close are these fires to you, and how big of a threat do you think it is to your campus and your campus community?
JERRY DERLOSHON, DIRECTOR OF P.R. & NEWS, PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY: Well, thank you. Most recently, as you said, the fire was Malibu Canyon fire. This is more of a Corral Canyon fire, which is several miles from the campus, but it's producing a tremendous amount of smoke in the air.
Driving up to the campus on PCH from the Santa Monica area, it's a remarkable amount of smoke in the air. It's just -- we have wonderful blue sky kind of clear morning, and then looking to the west there, it's just so much smoke. It almost defies, you know, understanding. It's producing a great deal of smoke.
HOLMES: So what are you recommending or doing with your students and your folks there on campus?
DERLOSHON: Well, we're in a shelter in place protocol, which is what we do at Pepperdine in circumstances when it threatens the campus community. And we have called for a relocation of our residents on campus to one of our major shelter (INAUDIBLE) facilities known as the Tyler Campus Center.
So all residents of the campus community, except residents on what we call Tiner (ph) Court and (INAUDIBLE), those residents are being not asked to relocate at this time. But everyone else is.
It's a precautionary move at this time. And we're just keeping an eye on this and we're OK. And we hope we'll continue to be OK. And right now our hearts are really going out to these residents to the west of us who aren't as fortunate.
HOLMES: And sir, want to make sure this is simply out of an abundance of caution, if you will. There is no feeling there at Pepperdine just yet, of course -- we don't know, and these things can spark up and those embers get going any time. We don't know anything for sure, but right now not a real threat to Pepperdine University, and this is just being done, like I said, out of an abundance of caution?
DERLOSHON: You said it better than I did.
HOLMES: OK.
Well, how many do you have on campus there? How many students do you have living on campus that would need to shelter in place or be relocated to one of those facilities you just talked about?
DERLOSHON: It's a community of under 2,000. It includes faculty, staff and students. And this is, as you know, Thanksgiving weekend. Many of our faculty, staff and students, I'm sure, are traveling and enjoying time with their families away. But -- so at most, it's a community of just under 2,000.
HOLMES: Well, you know that I guess maybe good news and a good thing now that a lot of people are still gone and spending time with families. A spot they'd certainly like to be. And glad you don't have so many people on campus right now.
Jerry Derloshon with Pepperdine University. Good luck to you all out there. Thank you for spending some time and updating us and our viewers about what's happening out there with your school.
DERLOSHON: You're welcome. Thank you.
NGUYEN: Just looking at these pictures coming into CNN of these flames spreading across California in the Malibu area and the fires that are burning down homes. That is a home right there on fire. We've seen many of them this morning as the fires have spread to neighborhoods.
This is something California definitely does not need in wake of last month's two dozen fires that tore through so many acres and forced so many from their homes. Indeed, killed 14 people as well.
Let's get you on the phone now to CNN's Kara Finnstrom. She's a CNN correspondent who not only covered the fires last month, but again, Kara, this is not something that folks in California really want to see, especially after deal with so much last month.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, Betty, it's definitely not. And I think a lot of folks had hoped that so much had burned last month that there wouldn't be that dry brush there to ignite. But firefighters say there are a lot of areas there that still have a lot of dry brush, and that's what we're seeing there this morning.
Those high winds kicking up a fire in the Malibu area. We're in the car headed out that way right now. Downtown L.A. about 30 miles from where this fire is burning.
Firefighters tell us the good news is that they were on standby. They had crews ready to go. They knew that these winds were forecast for today. They knew there were dry conditions. So they say they were in place.
They have about 300 firefighters who have been on the scene fighting this. They tell us the winds have been blowing at about 20 to 30 miles per hour. They've been forecast to gust at up to 75 miles per hour. So that would be a concern if they do pick up.
They've had some water-dropping helicopters on the scene. They have evacuated at least 100 people, and we're told that at least 200 homes in the Malibu area are threatened by this at this point. But again, firefighters on the scene.
And Betty, we're on the way. We'll be updating you with more information as we get it.
NGUYEN: Boy, we've been speak with firefighters this morning. In fact, we just spoke with an inspector not too long ago who said essentially, yes, they've been prepared for this. They knew about the Santa Ana winds, but this is just picking up and moving so very quickly.
He pretty much equated it to a fire, and then you have got a blow dryer on it that's burning or running at some 75 miles per hour. And that is just fanning these flames. And it sounded like these firefighters, even though there are some 160 to 300 on the scene, they have got their hands full and indeed need some reinforcements.
FINNSTROM: Well, that's what we saw last month. And, you know, that's a concern any time a fire breaks out here in southern California, when there are these kind of conditions.
There's only so much those crews can do. Standing ready helps, but Mother Nature is a force that sometimes is just too much to reckon with. And sometimes these fires have to burn through certain areas.
But they are on the ground. They're trying to assess it. And, you know, hopefully that will help in some manner. But you're going to have to hope that we get a little mercy from Mother Nature today.
NGUYEN: Yes. And what is really remarkable as we've been watching these pictures, not only the fires burning homes to the ground, but the efforts that firefighters are taking to try to get some water to douse some of these flames. We have some video into CNN that shows a helicopter pretty much dipping into someone's backyard pool to get enough water to transfer to another area that is on fire.
Talk to us about what you are hearing, whether it be on the radio or with the local news there, as to what people are advising homeowners and people in the area to do.
FINNSTROM: Well, definitely just stay alert to local media. You know, there had been at least 100 mandatory evacuations so far, but there could be more.
This fire, as you mentioned, is continuing to move very rapidly. So families need to stay tuned.
And, you know, I know with the fires we had last month, they just asked people in the area to be ready, you know, so they could jump if there are mandatory evacuations ordered for their areas. And any time there is a high fire danger risk and crews are on standby, that's a good idea for families in that area.
NGUYEN: Oh, no doubt, especially after they've been through so much in the past month. Some 14 people died in those wildfires. And it seems like they were just recovering from it.
A lot of people, I'm sure, were thankful, especially over the holiday, that their home didn't burn. And yet many are waking up today and watching theirs burn to the ground as firefighters are trying to get a handle on this wildfire that is just burning out of control.
Kara, we're going to let you get to the scene.
That's Kara Finnstrom, a CNN correspondent who is covering this for us.
Of course, we'll be checking back with you shortly as well. But we're going to stay on these wildfires throughout the morning.
HOLMES: Yes. And we're told now, Betty, that the mandatory evacuations are in place. This is coming to us from the Malibu City Web site.
Mandatory evacuations in place for Corral Canyon, Puerco Canyon, Latigo Canyon, Sycamore Canyon, Escondido Canyon, Winding Way, Ramirez Canyon, and points west to Trancas Canyon. Those are mandatory evacuations right now.
We will try to get those up on the screen, tell folks what's going on out there. But people out there being urged to be prepared, be ready to roll. And immediately follow all instructions from the fire department and the sheriff's department personnel as they give them to you.
We did put up on the screen a moment ago as well that an evacuation center has been set up by the Red Cross at Agora (ph) High School out there, and asking people, as well, according to the Malibu City Web site, for folks not to evacuate to Zuma Beach because there is heavy smoke in that area.
Zuma Beach, presumably a place that people might look to turn to. But asked not to do that at this point.
Well, again, this picture is telling the story for us this morning. We knew there was a fire this morning.
We started covering this, Betty, several hours ago now. We were told a 300-acre fire. People were being evacuated, but then when the first pictures of the flames hitting these homes and you see -- you can make out whole homes engulfed in flames right on top of each other, as we're seeing here.
Our hearts just sank, and you can't help but that to happen when you look at this picture. No word right now -- no injuries reported. No loss of life reported. But we are still looking at people's lives going up in flames as we see their homes burn.
Look at that picture of someone's home, their livelihood, completely up in flames right now -- Betty.
NGUYEN: And you know the folks not only watching, but in that area are saying, not again. We just made it through a round of devastating wildfires. And here they go, sparking up again.
And as you mentioned, this has moved very, very quickly. We got word of it around 7:00 Eastern Time. And we've been following it.
When it started, it was up to 100 acres, and they had warned us that there would be evacuations in neighborhoods, that this fire was moving very quickly. And now, about three hours later, it has torn through some 400-plus acres.
More than 100 homes have been evacuated. And now we're watching homes, in fact, burn to the ground. Firefighters on the scene have been telling us this thing is just moving too quickly, especially with those Santa Ana winds whipping with gusts up to 70 miles per hour. They just can't get a handle on it because as soon as an ember gets pretty much thrown into another area, that fire starts up, and then they've got to try to surround it the best they can.
But at this point, none -- no portion of this fire is contained. So they are going to have quite a fight on their hands today. And people, again, as you mentioned, T.J., have been told to evacuate.
The smoke is going to be a major problem as well. Looking at some I-Reports coming in from Pepperdine University. It's not in the wake of this fire just yet, but it is fairly close. And folks there on campus are being told to stay inside their dorm rooms.
I guess it's a good thing that this is a holiday weekend. A lot of people aren't on campus. But because of the smoke, people are told not only to stay inside, but if you do have to seek shelter, they have some that are available. But they are being urged to use caution and not go outside because of these fires.
HOLMES: And firefighters called it. That's something else. They knew this was a possibility and they called it. They knew this could happen. We heard from them a little earlier that certainly they knew the red flag conditions, and they were on standby for it and just can't do anything to stop it.
Folks, we are all over this story, keeping an eye on southern California. Once again, Malibu burning once again.
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NGUYEN: Want to continue covering the fires here.
As you can see, helicopters are putting water, also flame retardant on these wildfires that are just burning out of control in California. Yes, folks, California is on fire once again.
Not what they want to see, especially as we've been watching many homes burn to the ground this morning. So far, some 400-plus acres have burned, and this fire is moving very, very quickly thanks to those Santa Ana winds.
HOLMES: Oh, that picture there is telling the story this morning.
NGUYEN: Look at all the homes on fire.
HOLMES: Lined up. You can see individual fires, whole homes completely engulfed in that neighborhood.
And again, we're told the fire isn't really -- the original fire that started isn't -- it's right there around that neighborhood. This is an issue where these winds, up to 70 miles an hour, these Santa Ana winds, get a hold of some of these flames, they throw these embers over into areas where there are homes. They land on those roofs, those fires get going, and this is the result.
But these are the pictures we just started getting in the past hour of these homes. And just, again...
NGUYEN: Just devastating.
HOLMES: ... people's lives going up in flames here.
Our Bonnie Schneider is certainly keeping an eye on this particular item.
And that is always a scary thing, Bonnie. The fire can be a ways away from you. The firefighter even told us a mile away. But your home can still be under threat.
SCHNEIDER: Absolutely. With a gust of 60 miles per hour, the force of that gust can move the flames.
And I want to show you that we have a graphic that actually illustrates how this occurs. Take a look at what happens as the winds drive the flames up and around the trees and the debris, and much of this has been burnt out from previous fires, so it's very ripe for it to burn because of the tinder.
The flames then go up the tree branches. And then look what happens. They actually jump -- there it is -- becoming airborne to the next tree or the next structure.
And then that one becomes on fire. And this happens over and over again.
And what's happening is, as we take a look at Google Earth where the fire is believed to have started, somewhere in the vicinity of Malibu State Park, you can see that it's moving in a southwest direction, because the winds right now are coming from the northeast. And we've been getting steady reports of winds from the northeast that have been very intense, especially around Malibu.
The latest wind gusts are so fierce at 52 miles per hour, they have stayed that way for the past couple of hours. Earlier this morning, the winds were gusting at about 40, and then all of a sudden, the past two hours they jump to 49. And now gust up to 52 miles per hour.
These reports coming in and around the Malibu Hills area, which as you can see on Google Earth, is somewhere between the Malibu Creek State Park and Malibu itself here on the ocean. So this whole vicinity is getting those fierce winds so close to the ocean, even though when you look at some of the advisories that we have right now, the heaviest winds and the most intense winds were likely to be forecast inland, but we're still getting those wind gusts very fierce in and around the hills, the canyons and the valleys of this region.
Current sustained winds out of the northeast at about 24 miles per hour. With high pressure building in today, the winds are going down slope, down the mountain. The air heats and compresses, it becomes very hot and dry, and it really dries and heats whatever is in its path. So, we still have that offshore flow for Saturday.
The only thing that's a little bit different this time is the relative humidity values. We're still in critical fire danger. In October when we had the fires it was extremely critical because we had lower relative humidity.
Right now the relative humidity is forecast to be between 5 and 10 percent, and the gust up to about 60 on the high side, whereas last time we had gusts of hurricane-force winds. So we had very strong gusts, we had drier conditions. We also certainly had warmer temperatures.
Right now, the temperature is about 52 degrees in Malibu. The sun isn't out yet. It's still early in the morning.
Temperatures for highs should heat up to about 70 for today. So that's still warm, but not as hot as it was in October. But these fierce winds are in the forecast, not just for today, but for the afternoon.
We'll see them subside by Saturday. And you can see the winds suddenly become more southerly by tomorrow. So this won't be a prolonged threat -- Betty, T.J.
NGUYEN: Well, that is some good news, especially when we're looking at this, several homes on fire in Malibu this morning. You can see the individual homes there just burning to the ground. This is something firefighters are really trying to get a handle on. At this point, there is zero containment.
HOLMES: Well, another part of this story, Pepperdine University. Not under direct threat from this fire right now.
NGUYEN: Not yet.
HOLMES: But Pepperdine -- yes, not yet. But Pepperdine, certainly there in the Malibu area. Students actually there being told to shelter in place. Also, some students being taken to certain locations on that campus just as a precaution right now.
But a couple of students who are on campus this morning. Francisco Sapigao is one of our I-Reporters, sent us in some pictures, first of all. We also have Mr. Sapigao on the line with us as well.
Mr. Sapigao, are you with me? This is T.J. here in Atlanta.
We are taking a look at your pictures, if we can get those up on the screen right now. You can't see flames, but, my goodness, this was the vantage point you had.
Tell me where you were when you took this picture. What was going on here?
FRANCISCO SAPIGAO, I-REPORTER: Yes, we were -- well, we woke up around 5:30 in the morning to one of the public safety vehicles outside of our dorm. And my brother was visiting from USC, so he was kind of like -- he didn't know what was going on. So, I was like, you know, OK, just pack up our stuff. We have to get out of here.
So we drove up the hill away from the fire. And we decided to take pictures because we weren't in any immediate harm.
So we took some pictures, and then the public safety officials were telling us to head down to the caf (ph). So we went down there for a while and then we decided to just leave campus. And so that's where we are now.
HOLMES: And Mr. Sapigao, you just went through this not too long ago, a month ago. Pepperdine under the same type of threat, if you will, from the other fires that were going on there.
SAPIGAO: Yes.
HOLMES: Is this something -- when you saw this, did you shake your head and say, oh, my goodness, here we go again, or was this something you are kind of getting used to and it's just part of life there in southern California?
SAPIGAO: Well, actually, when I woke up at 5:30 in the morning, I was still like, you know, kind of out of it. So I wasn't sure if I was dreaming or not. And then I heard, oh, there's another fire.
HOLMES: Oh, man.
SAPIGAO: Yes.
HOLMES: And again, what are students on campus now being told? You said you had a public service announcement, if you will, there on campus telling students to get out. Did it sound ominous? Were they serious and were they saying that this was a serious threat and -- or was it alarming, I guess, if you will, or did they -- were they pretty calm in saying this was just a precaution?
SAPIGAO: I think they were just pretty calm, because as you can see from the pictures, or I guess maybe you guys have a live feed, but the fires aren't too close to Pepperdine. So the pictures that I took were actually -- you could actually see the smoke from behind the Drescher Graduate Campus.
HOLMES: OK.
SAPIGAO: So I wasn't really sure how far it is, but I guess, you k now, they are just taking precautions.
HOLMES: And how was campus? Were kids kind of -- students kind of frantic and moving around, or everybody is pretty calm? And like I said, this is part of life in southern California. You just went through it not too long ago, so people know the routine.
SAPIGAO: Yes, it was just a regular thing. People -- well, there aren't too many people on campus because there's still people off on break. So with the few people that were here, they were just packing up their stuff and heading down. It wasn't too frantic.
HOLMES: Well, Mr. Sapigao, we appreciate you taking the time to send us your pictures. We appreciate the pictures.
Some fascinating images here. Some of the first we're getting from our I-Reporters. But certainly a different vantage point here.
Good luck to you. And I know you and your brother got off campus, but certainly a lot of your classmates and a lot of your teachers, your professors, there as well. Good luck to you all and making it through another -- another fire mess that you have going on there in southern California.
Mr. Sapigao, thank you so much.
SAPIGAO: Thank you.
NGUYEN: And we're showing you these live pictures coming into CNN. It is just devastating watching these fires just tear through a house. Many of them burning to the ground.
We were seeing in a wide shot a little bit earlier, it was an entire neighborhood. And it's not like the whole neighborhood was on fire. There was a house here, a house there that was completely engulfed. And it's because of the embers.
They get picked up by the wind. They land on another house. And there you go, it starts the fires on that particular home.
HOLMES: It's clear, like you said, from the top, that vantage point. You have -- look at that.
NGUYEN: Individual fires.
HOLMES: Four little fires, individual fires. So this isn't the one sweeping fire that's going through some countryside. This is a neighborhood. And each home, individual home, on fire.
And I just saw something in the picture we just showed. We saw cars outside the homes on fire as well.
NGUYEN: On fire, too.
HOLMES: That's something I didn't notice earlier.
NGUYEN: Well, it just speaks to the nature of the winds and how firefighters are having a really tough time battling this.
In fact, I spoke with Inspector Sam Padilla a little bit earlier. He's with the L.A. County Fire Department. And he talked to us about what they are facing. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PADILLA: Well, this is another brushfire that is being pushed by the winds, as we refer to it, as a wind-driven fire. It started approximately at 3:30 this morning somewhere in the area of Mesa Peak Mountain and Corral Canyon. This fire is being pushed southwest right now out of the northeast wind. We have over 100 homes that have been evacuated. We have right now the areas from Malibu Canyon Road all the way to Point Dune we're asking for evacuations.
NGUYEN: How many people are you talking about within that area?
PADILLA: Hundreds. Hundreds. Hundreds. Literally.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And, of course, we're going to continue to watch these firefighters battle flames out in California. A wildfire that has burned some 400 acres and probably more before the day ends, because those Santa Ana winds are just whipping things up in Malibu.
Of course, you'll want to stay with CNN. We're going to stay on top of this breaking news for you all morning long.
Don't go anywhere. We'll be back with much more.
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NGUYEN: Look at the breaking news out of California. More homes on fire today. Wildfires, in fact, have been burning since 3:30 West Coast time this morning, local time there in Malibu. And so far, many homes are on fire.
As you look, you can see the individual fires there in neighborhoods. It's not like the wildfire moved into this neighborhood and everything is engulfed. It appears that embers have been pushed by the wind on to homes, and therefore starting the fires that you see here.
I've lost count how many have been on fire, but I know that there's been at least a half a dozen, if not more, that we've been watching just in this shot alone from our affiliate KABC.
One of the big problems, as mentioned, those Santa Ana winds. They've been gusting up to 70 miles per hour in some cases.
Let's get you over to CNN's Bonnie Schneider in the severe weather center.
Bonnie, these winds are wreaking havoc yet again. That was a big problem last month, when more than two dozen wildfires ripped through California at that time.
SCHNEIDER: That's true.
We do have some things working to our advantage in this situation. The relative humidity is not as dry as it was in October and temperatures are not as warm.
The problem is the forecast for these fierce winds will not diminish, at least for the next four to five hours. And the wind- driven flames, what you're seeing in the video, on the right side of your screen, kind of matches what's happening in this animation to explain how it all works, as the flames actually work down on the ground.
What happens is they ride up the trees and then jump, become airborne, moving from tree to tree or, in this case, house to house. And that's why we're seeing such a serious situation with wind advisories because of this threat continuing to at least 3:00 today California time. And we'll be watching for that.
I also want to show you something interesting on Google Earth so you can get a better perspective of the way the flames are moving.
We've heard some of the officials talk about the southwesterly movement of the flames which began somewhere in the vicinity of Malibu Creek State Park and then started moving to the southwest. So one of the roads they have been speaking about for evacuation is Malibu Canyon Road, and that travels from Malibu Creek State Park down to the beach in Malibu. And this is an area they are evacuating because the winds are driving the flames in this direction.
And incidentally, the latest observation out of LAX is reporting smoke. So the smoke is now visible the further south and west that you go, all the way down to downtown Los Angeles, that smoke is visible. And we've seen it to the north as well near Pepperdine University -- Betty, T.J.
NGUYEN: Yes. In fact, we spoke with an I-Reporter from Pepperdine a little earlier, and he, in fact, was evacuating. He got in the car with his brother, but they are on campus. They are being advised by officials to pretty much stay in place.
Some of those secure areas have been located, but they haven't been told to go to those areas just yet. They are just watching it at this point because it hasn't quite moved there. But, as you can see, it has moved into neighborhoods in Malibu.
Many homes are on fire. And this thing is just moving so very quickly.
It started, again, around 3:30 local time. And within the past four hours it has burned some 400-plus acres. More than 100 homes have been mandatory -- they've seen mandatory evacuations. And you can see the smoke just billowing high above this fire.
Firefighters have quite a lot on their hands today. We're going to be watching it every step of the way. You don't turn away from CNN because we're going to have all of the developments just as soon as they come in to the CNN NEWSROOM.
But again, folks, if you're just waking up on this Saturday morning, California is on fire yet again. We'll continue to follow this breaking news.
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