Car surrounded by flood and mudslide debris behind the Holy Redeemer Church, La Crescenta-Montrose, 1934

Description

Access to this collection is generously supported by Arcadia funds., Text from negative sleeve: Floods, Montrose, 1934, 34.21195298783677, Car surrounded by flood and mudslide debris after a catastrophic flood and mudslide. Timber and the remains of a low stone wall are on the left; the church is in the background., -118.23079705238342, In November 1933, wildfires raged through the San Gabriel Mountains above the Crescenta Valley. In late December, a series of storms dropped 12 inches of rain. On New Year's Eve, heavy rains led to sporadic flooding. Around midnight, mountain hillsides collapsed sending millions of tons of mud into the Crescenta Valley neighborhoods below. More than 400 homes were destroyed in La Cañada, La Crescenta, Montrose and Tujunga. Scores of people were killed, and hundreds were left homeless.