Watch: Wildfire rages in California’s Malibu Canyon

An evacuation order is in place near the city of Malibu in the US state of California after a wildfire broke out with a “rapid rate of spread”.

The blaze has been dubbed the Franklin Fire by authorities, who say it has burned more than 300 acres in Malibu Canyon after starting at about 22:50 local time on Monday (06:50 GMT).

It is not yet clear what caused the blaze, which has been labelled a brush fire – meaning a type of blaze that affects lower-lying vegetation such as grasses.

The evacuation order covered a region east of Malibu Canyon Road and South of Piuma Road as well as the Serra Retreat area, the County of Los Angeles Fire Department said.