The Hollywood legend Dick Van Dyke has revealed that his neighbours “saved” him from his home as he attempted to evacuate due to the devastating Malibu Franklin Fire.
The Franklin Fire, another late-year wildfire fanned by fierce Santa Ana winds, left a trail of destruction in its wake. Officials confirmed nine structures were destroyed and six had been damaged. Fire officials said it would take a “number of days” to put out the blaze, which was 20 per cent contained by early Thursday afternoon (12 December). The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
The strongest winds in the area had passed and meteorologists said high fire dangers had decreased, which aided efforts to contain the fire. Evacuations in Malibu displaced thousands of residents, including celebrities Dick Van Dyke and Cher.
According to People magazine, the Mary Poppins star, who turns 99 on 13 December, admitted that he had a lucky escape from the fire and was thankful to his neighbours.
In an interview on theToday show, which aired on 12 December, Van Dyke said: “It [the fire] was coming from the hill, you could see it. And oh my God, and we got out of here. I was trying to crawl to the car, I had exhausted myself, I couldn’t get up.”
He added: “Three neighbors came and carried me out and came back and put out a little fire in the guest house and saved me.”
The actor had previously posted on Facebook on Tuesday (10 December) to announce that he and his wife, Arlene Silver, were safe, but that they were not able to locate one of their pets. “Arlene and I have safely evacuated with our animals except for Bobo escaped as we were leaving,” he wrote about their cat at the time.
“We’re praying he’ll be ok and that our community in Serra Retreat will survive these terrible fires.”
The actor later updated his followers when they found Bobo, writing: “We found Bobo as soon as we arrived back home this morning. There was so much interest in his disappearance that Animal Control was called in to assist. But, thankfully he was easy to find and not harmed.”
On Thursday (12 December), Los Angeles County officials announced that firefighters had made substantial progress on fighting the 4,037-acre fire, and containment was up to 20 percent, according to Dusty Martin of Cal Fire (California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection).
The first phase of repopulation, in which residents are allowed to begin returning home, will begin shortly but mandatory evacuation orders will only be lifted in some areas.
