MALIBU, Calif. --
Hundreds of Pepperdine University students paid tribute Wednesday to the firefighters who protected the campus and helped fight back a wildfire that scorched 4,500 acres in the Malibu area.
Students and staff at Pepperdine's Malibu campus cheered as firefighters were introduced at the university's gym, where about 1,800 students were taken when the blaze broke out Sunday morning.
"You can now add this to your resume -- survived the Malibu fire 2007," Pepperdine University President Andy K. Benton told the students during the ceremony.
The 4,500-acre Malibu fire, which first flared on Sunday, was listed as 75 percent contained on Wednesday, with no active flames reported, and evacuated residents were being allowed back into their homes.
All together, 22 structures were damaged or destroyed. The fire, which was burning east from Malibu Canyon, was halted before reaching Las Flores Canyon.
The Pepperdine campus was largely untouched by the blaze.
But despite the raging fire and threat to homes, there were no serious injuries associated with the blaze.
Pepperdine resumed classes Wednesday.
