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• 1 media/EXM-N-12166-014_2.jpg 2022-09-27T17:06:49-07:00 Chatsworth Brush Fires, 1957 13 Set behind the hazy background of burning brush, four ordinary men are seen battling flames with their shovels. The Chatsworth Brush Fires broke out on July 3, 1957, after sparks from a passing train’s engine flew onto the surrounding dry brush. plain 2023-01-03T11:49:12-08:00 Set behind the hazy background of burning brush, four ordinary men are seen battling flames with their shovels. The Chatsworth Brush Fires broke out on July 3, 1957, after sparks from a passing train’s engine flew onto the surrounding dry brush.[1] Flames surged from the railroad tracks up toward the area around Corriganville, thirty miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles.[2] By morning, the fire had descended the slopes of the Santa Susana Pass, engulfing nearly 700 acres of land. Around 400 firefighters rushed into response but given the low humidity and the high wind speeds, they were unable to contain the flames. The fire threatened around 20 homes near the Ventura County line along with the Corriganville movie set in Simi Valley. However, because the Ventura County firemen were able to “throw back the flames” with their equipment, the homes and movie sets were left unscathed.[3]
  
  Sadly, the fires continued throughout the night, prompting the evacuation of 400 Chatsworth residents. By morning, the fire had scorched nearly 1100 acres of land in Los Angeles County and 900 acres in Ventura County, destroying 15 homes across three suburban Chatsworth communities: Twin Lakes, Deer Lake, and Browns Canyon. In response, around 160 firemen from Ventura and Los Angeles County hurried into the entrance of the Twin Lakes community and were successful in their attempts to suppress the flames. The fires also caused transportation delays as they halted traffic on Devonshire, a street that ran through most of Chatsworth.2 Ultimately, it was the change in weather conditions that contained the fire. By the third day of firefighting, the temperature had dropped to 65 degrees, the wind speed had died down, and the humidity had risen to 40%.[4] These changes in the weather finally allowed the nearly 500 firefighters to contain the blaze. By the early morning of July 7, 1957, the fire had been extinguished, and the firefighters returned home.[5]
   

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  [1] “Three-Day Brush Fire Controlled” Cooler Weather Helps Overcome Chatsworth Blaze,” Los Angeles Times (July 7, 1957), 1. 4
  
  [2] “Crews Fight Off Waning Fire in Canyon,” Los Angeles Times (July 6, 1957), 1. 3
  
  [3] “Brush Fire Advances on Chatsworth Fringes: 700 Acres in Santa Susana Pass Swept by Blaze 400 Firemen Mustered on Front,” Los Angeles Times (July 4, 1957), 1. 2
  
  [4] “15 Homes Burn, 400 Flee Canyon: 2-County Blaze Spreads,” Los Angeles Times (July 5, 1957), 1. 1
  
  [5] “Fire Raging In Movieland,” South China Morning Post (July 4, 1957), 12.