Andrew Freeborn with the Kern County Fire Department. The fire began Wednesday in the Kern River canyon and spread rapidly as it moved through the canyon and met with strong winds along the ridges ...

At about 2 a.m., students huddled in Pepperdine University’s library and watched through the window as wind-whipped flames blazed over a nearby hill. The Malibu sky glowed red. Smoke filtered into the ...