Thousands homeless as fire rips through university city of Berkeley, California

Berkeley, 19 September 1923 - Hundreds of homes and a large number of businesses were destroyed by out of control fires in Berkeley, California yesterday. In material terms, the damage is expected to amount to several millions of dollars.

The vastness of the area impacted by the fire was a measure of the strength of a hot, dry, northerly wind which helped to drive the spread of the fire. However, it was also a change of wind direction which helped save the city and the buildings of its famous University of California campus from complete destruction. Tragically though two students of the university were killed when crushed beneath the collapsed roof of a building enveloped by the fire.

Although the fire did not seriously impact many of the University buildings, the homes of many of the staff were destroyed - in fact, half of the faculty are believed to have lost their living quarters. In an effort to get a handle on the fire, local firemen from the Berkeley Fire Department were supported by fire brigades from nearby cities such as Oakland and San Francisco, and by dynamite squads who worked in various ways to check the flames.

In one quarter mile area where ninety houses once stood, nothing remains but ash and across a wider area extending to 35 blocks, the fire levelled about 600 buildings. The result, according to figures released from the local Mayor’s office, is that 2,400 people have been rendered homeless.

Archive footage of a burning Berkeley in 1923

[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]