A Message from President Gash Regarding the Franklin Fire

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To the Pepperdine Community—

When we are tested, we lean on our faith, rely upon our planning, and rally alongside one another. I am grateful that through prayer, preparation, and cooperation, our Pepperdine community safely navigated the challenges encountered over the last 12 hours, and our prayers continue to go out to the Malibu community.

Last night at 10:49 PM, a fire was reported in Malibu Canyon a few miles from Pepperdine’s campus. As we do in these situations, Pepperdine immediately constituted its Emergency Operations Committee (EOC), and we established an on-campus command center in the Seaver Board Room. Over the next hour, what would come to be known as the Franklin Fire spread and became visible from campus, with spot fires affecting some parts of the campus itself. While campus is no longer threatened, the fire has now grown to more than 2,200 acres as fire crews continue to battle the flames to protect communities.

As the fire began to approach campus, Pepperdine’s EOC, in coordination with the Los Angeles County Fire Department, implemented the University’s well-practiced and historically proven successful shelter-in-place protocol on the Malibu campus that directed students to relocate to Payson Library and the Tyler Campus Center. Our campus, thoughtfully designed and maintained with fire safety in mind, has proven to be a secure place for our community during wildfires affecting the Malibu campus. Thankfully, there has been little damage to campus structures and no reports of injuries among our students, faculty, or staff.

As my wife and daughter Joline and Jennifer arrived at the Tyler Campus Center last night, they joined our students as they assembled together, supporting each other and lifting one another up in prayer. As I moved back and forth between the command center and the shelter locations, I was encouraged by the unwavering dedication of our faculty and staff in offering guidance and comfort to our students and to each other during this stressful time. In those moments, the strength of our community was on full display, and I am so proud of the calm resilience of our Pepperdine family.

We are profoundly grateful to the heroic firefighters and emergency personnel working tirelessly throughout the night to protect the lives and property at Pepperdine and in Malibu. We also extend our deepest appreciation to our students, faculty, and staff for their cooperation and camaraderie during this unexpected challenge.

To prioritize the well-being of our Malibu community, Tuesday classes on the Malibu campus were canceled and finals postponed. The leaders of each school will soon be communicating their plans for the rest of the week. The safety and security of our students, faculty, and staff remain our highest priorities, and we will do everything in our power to continue to support them in the days ahead. We encourage students who feel they may need support to contact the Student Health Center (310.506.4316, option 3) and the Counseling Center (310.506.4210), where medical staff and counselors remain available.

We ask for your continued prayers in the coming days—prayers for the safety of those in the fire’s path, strength and endurance for our local first responders, and abiding peace for all those affected. 

As we emerge from this challenge, we will remain rooted in faith, leaning on one another, and serving our Malibu community together with God’s help.

Jim Gash

President and CEO

This entry was posted in Malibu.