Man says neighbours saved Malibu home from fire

(13 Nov 2018) The sky was black and flames on the next ridge were fast approaching when Paul Rasmussen, his pregnant wife and 6-year-old daughter fled their mountainside Malibu home on Friday for what they thought might be the last time. His only hope that the large home, once billed in real estate listings as "Shangri-La," would survive was that his next-door neighbor, Randy Berkeley, would not only protect his own house, but also Rasmussen's. On Monday, after driving a winding road across charred slopes and past smoldering ruins of other houses in Decker Canyon, Rasmussen wrapped Berkeley in a bear hug of thanks after finding their two houses still standing untouched by fire. Fire officials lifted some evacuation orders on Monday while warning Southern California residents to remain vigilant as strong winds fanned new fires. The return to normal for some was juxtaposed with the arrival of chaos for others, illustrating how quickly conditions can turn when erratic Santa Ana winds meet a spark in tinder-dry brush. At least two people have been killed and 370 homes have been destroyed in the fires that erupted last week west of downtown Los Angeles. It is likely that crews assessing damage will discover hundreds more homes lost in the canyons and steep hillsides in inland and coastal areas, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby said. Over 200,000 people were still under evacuation orders even as some residents were allowed to return home in the inland communities of Agoura Hills, Westlake Village and Newbury Park. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...