page_title: Griffith Park
section_title: Fires
hierarchical_section_title: Griffith Park / History / Fires
caption_attribution_description: English: This satellite image of Griffith Park was captured about a month after the fire. Both visible and infra-red wavelengths of light have been used to make this image. Vegetation appears in various shades of green, while the burned areas appear charcoal. The park’s unburned, natural vegetation appears darker green, while the irrigated golf courses adjacent to the park are bright green. Roads and dense urban areas appear grey or white. Water is dark blue. Large burned areas are evident in the north west and south-east parts of the park, with scattered smaller patches along the southern margin. Some botanical gardens and parts of a bird sanctuary, as well as some park structures like restrooms, were destroyed.
context_page_description: Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park covers 4,310 acres of land, making it one of the largest urban parks in North America. It is the second-largest city park in California, after Mission Trails Preserve in San Diego, and the 11th largest municipally-owned park in the United States. It has also been referred to as the Central Park of Los Angeles but is much larger, more untamed, and rugged than its New York City counterpart.
context_section_description: Hired as part of a welfare project, 3,780 men were in the park clearing brush on October 3, 1933, when a fire broke out in the Mineral Wells area. Many of the workers volunteered or were ordered to fight the fire. In all, 29 men were killed and 150 were injured. Professional firefighters arrived and limited the blaze to 47 acres (19 ha).
  On May 12, 1961, a wildfire on the south side of the park burned 814 acres (329 ha). It also destroyed eight homes and damaged nine more, chiefly in the Beachwood Canyon area.
  Another fire occurred circa 1971 in the Toyon Canyon area. Repelled by the ugliness of the devastated area, Amir Dialameh replanted a portion of it himself by hand. Over the course of more than 30 years, he tended the garden he built there with the help of occasional volunteers.
  On May 8, 2007, a major wildfire burned more than 817 acres (331 ha), destroying the bird sanctuary, Dante's View, and Captain's Roost, and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people. The fire came right up to one of the largest playgrounds in Los Angeles, Shane's Inspiration, and the Los Angeles Zoo, and threatened the Griffith Observatory, but left such areas intact. Several local organizations, including SaveGriffithPark.org, have been working since then with local officials to restore the park in a way that would benefit all. It was the third fire of the year. The city announced a $50 million plan to stabilize the burned slopes. The trees along Canyon Drive were allowed to grow back naturally, having been re-seeded by bird droppings.
caption: Aftermath of the 2007 fire. Both visible and infra-red wavelengths of light have been used to make this satellite image. Vegetation appears in various shades of green, while the burned areas appear charcoal.
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