Los Angeles herald., 1906-10-07
DAMAGE
TO WATER SUPPLY.
FOREST FIRE IS RAPIDLY
DYING OUT
Superintendent MuIhoIIand Says the
Flames Have Taken but Small
Part of San Fernando VAL
ley Watershed

A late report last night from the
Cahuenga ranch, just north of Holly
wood, stated that the great forest and
brush fire which for the past two days
has been devastating that section has
been put under control and Is rapidly
dying out.
Yesterday some idea of the great
devastation by the flames could be
obtained by a glnce at the stricken
district. From Calabassas at the head
of the San Fernando valley clear to
the Cahuenga pass north of Holly
wood, the flames swept, taking every
thing before them.
Ranch houses, shatks, telegraph and
telephone lines, miles and miles Of
brush and forest and scores of small
camps Throughout the valley, along
with orchards and crops went down
before the onward sweep of the brush
fire.
Chatsworth escaped by narrow
margin, the flames sweeping within
half mile of the town limits and then
driving on toward Fernando. There
the town also experienced a narrow
escape and by the desperate work of
the rangers and the ranchers of the
neighborhood assisted by favorable
wind, the fire was turned and driven
back
Fife destroys F1OnleS
Tn hundreds of instances the brave
work of the men and women whose
homes are in the valley and whose
very existence depends upon the water
supply from the sheds of the Fernando
hills, saved their property from the
flames and all of them worked like
demons to turn the fire back and keep
1t from the canyons where the strong
winds would have driven the mighty
blaze bowling down toward Los An
geles.
Homby and Newhall, according to
the reports from that section, barely
escaped. Newhall being the most ser,
iously damaged because of the flamet-
turning to the east of the CITY, de-
several homes in that neigh
borhood-
From within a few miles of Gala
bassas in a long strip, several miles
wide, between Simi and Chatsworth,
between Homby. NewhaIl and Fernan-
do, on past Cahuenga, the entire dis
trict is burned and the brush and for
ests look as though blighted by a
touch of some giant destroyer.
Happily, however, the Los Angeles
water shed has been but little affected
by the fire and the point from which
the greatest amount of water is OBJ
tanned is practically untouched.
After a partial tour of the area
devastated by Fridays forest fire,
William Mulholand, water superin-
returned to Los Angeles late
yesterday afternoon to say that the
citys water supply, so far as he can
say at this time, has not been mater
tally affected.
Water Supply Safe
The fire was largely confined to the
Soledad and Santa Clara sides of the
range he says and while In places
the watershed from which the city de-
riveS it's main source of supply has
been burned off, the burned district
is Of no great area.
Mr.. Mulholland, accompanied by J.
B. Lippincott, supervising engineer of
the Owens river project, left Los An
geles in an automobile early yester-
day morning and passed most of the
day in their investiga tions. They re-
port that the fire, with the exception
Of a few cases, has been extinguished.
THE brush and trees which cover
the range are of the greatest value in
the flow of water in time
of the spring freshets," says Mr. Null
permitting the ground to
absorb the moisture and give it off at
a time when 1t Is most needed.
I'm many places there is smoke, but
the fire is practically eXtinguished.
What damage 1t has done to our water
supply it is impossible to estimate
until we know the condi-
tion of the smaller canyons. Into these
we did not 60 1 shall continue my
and be able to know the
pretty we'll within the next
few days."