The fire stretched 4.5 miles early Wednesday, engulfing the Santa Monica Mountains resort area to the east, as well as central Malibu and large beachfront properties.

On Tuesday evening, more than 1,500 firefighters and several agencies were deployed to fight the fire.

Cpt. Jennifer Seetoo of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office said at a press conference Tuesday evening: “Fires can be extremely unpredictable and we strongly encourage residents in the fire areas to be prepared, have a plan and follow our evacuation warnings and orders.”

She added that officers were available to patrol areas where homes, some belonging to famous and wealthy residents, had been evacuated. “We will not tolerate anyone coming into this community to re-victimize our community members,” she said.

There have been no reports of deaths or injuries, but more than 8,000 properties are in the affected areas and at least seven have been destroyed.

The cause of the fire is unknown and is still under investigation.

Local photographer Tim Horton, who lives on the Pepperdine campus, posted images of a Chinook helicopter collecting water from a lake and throwing it onto a fire, of burning pine trees and of flames just feet from his apartment .

Michael Friel, the college’s communications director, said the students housed had food, water and electricity to charge their phones.

According to PowerOutage.us, more than 45,000 energy customers in the area were affected by power outages, but some Pepperdine buildings are powered by generators.

Pepperdine said in a social media post early Wednesday that fire activity around the college has “decreased greatly as the Franklin Fire has burned most of the fuel immediately surrounding the campus.”

About 12 million people were under the warning on Tuesday as strong Santa Ana winds of more than 60 miles per hour and dry brush created the perfect conditions for fires to break out and spread quickly.