The flames came suddenly in the middle of the night, and the evacuation orders swiftly followed. Thousands of residents were told to leave their homes immediately and flee for their lives as wind gusts quickly turned a fire into a raging inferno in the hills above Malibu, Calif.

But some people stayed behind, using garden hoses in an attempt to protect their homes and themselves.

Alec Gellis, 31, said that he had just returned home from an evening out late Monday and began to lie down when he suddenly heard car horns blaring in the street.

“It was really bizarre,” Mr. Gellis said of the commotion. “So I went outside, and I noticed the sky was red.”

Mr. Gellis said that he scrambled to connect a gas-powered generator, a water pump and a hose to soak his home and put out embers with water from his swimming pool.

“Within 30 minutes, the fire was fully surrounding us,” he said. “Everywhere you looked, there was fire. It was so insane.”