The Other La Tuna Canyon Fire – In 1955

As we look back on the La Tuna Canyon Fire of 2017, we recognize that it was a fire of historic proportions for Los Angeles. But history shows us that a fire of similar proportions was fought on the exact same ground 62 years ago in 1955. A brief comparison of the two fires is as follows.

Our 2017 La Tuna Canyon Fire burned 7,000 acres and involved 1,000 firefighters and featured impressive air support. The 1955 La Tuna Canyon Fire burned 4,500 acres of that same ground, involved only 400 firefighters, and had no air support at all. And, worst of all, we lost a brave firefighter in that 1955 conflagration. Here’s how that “other” La Tuna Canyon Fire went down.

It was Sunday Nov. 6, 1955 after a hot, dry summer. At a home on the north side of La Tuna Canyon, two 8-year-old boys decided it would be fun to cook their lunch over an open fire in their backyard. A strong wind picked up embers from their little cook-fire and deposited them in the dry brush at the edge of their yard. Parents raced out with garden hoses, but it was too late. The wind-driven fire was now loose, and quickly ran up the hillside. A single engine company responded but the fire was already bigger than it could handle and was spreading rapidly. As the fire quickly crested the Verdugos, heading north toward Sunland Boulevard, more engine companies began to arrive from other parts of Los Angeles. They began to set up fire lines along that northern front.

That Sunday afternoon, as they prepared to defend homes along Sunland Boulevard, about 10 firetrucks drove up onto a fire road that ran the length of the ridge overlooking Sunland Boulevard. They arrayed themselves in a line in front of the advancing flames, confident they could stop its northward progression. But just as they got set, the wind gusted and the flames turned into a firestorm. One-hundred-foot flames swept over their fire-line. The men who were trapped underneath the huge flames threw themselves face down on the ground, while hose-men on the outside edges played their streams over them. A few of the men formed into dog-piles, and a man with a flowing hose jumped on top to let the water run over the mass of huddled firemen.

Fireman James Catlow was caught in this firestorm. His firetruck was parked in a narrow spot in the road that, if the truck were disabled, would block the retreat of the other units. He stood his ground, and hosed down his truck as the flames enveloped him. The truck was saved, but James Catlow was burned over 75% of his body. He died six days later and was posthumously awarded the LAFD Medal of Valor.

The firestorm abated, continued downhill, and was stopped on the slope by firemen fighting from Sunland Boulevard. It then shifted east and west to spread laterally along the Verdugos. The next day the fire spread rapidly from Tujunga to Burbank and east to Hillhaven Avenue. Structure protection was achieved thus: A single firetruck would pull into the yard of a threatened house. Firemen piled off the truck with axes and began hacking away at any brush or trees that touched a structure while one man topped off the truck’s water tank with a garden hose. They then backed out of the yard and played their hoses over the house while the fire passed.

On Tuesday, Nov. 8, after that aggressive fire on the western flank swept over the Tranquil Drive community, it was decided to start a backfire. The fire was now heading toward McGroarty, so a line was setup on Verdugo Crestline Drive. The backfire was set at 3 p.m. At midnight the fire made its last charge. One-hundred-foot flames hit the backfire and went out.

The rest of the operation was mopping up the spot fires, which lasted until Saturday. With only the loss of two homes, the LAFD was justifiably proud of their fight and they will forever remember the sacrifice of Fireman Catlow.

  mike lawler