Conflagration: The Oakland Firestorm Mural
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Uploaded by uncertainty65 on Oct 19, 2010
This slideshow tells the story of the Oakland Firestorm using some of the 2,000 tiles painted by survivors for a memorial project.
The Oakland Firestorm of Oct. 20, 1991, was America's worst urban conflagration since the Great Chicago Fire. Twenty-five people were killed, nearly 3,000 homes destroyed and more than 20,000 people evacuated.
The magnitude of the Oakland Firestorm is not popularly recognized, not even in the San Francisco Bay Area. This was no typical California wildfire. The more dense foliage of Northern California made this fire more devastating than the annual fires seen in Southern California, a ferocity that cameras were unable to fully capture. Coming a year after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, national news coverage of the firestorm tended to harken back to the previous event — a chance to show gripping earthquake footage rather than express the extent of the fire's devastation.
Hollywood slapped together an awful made-for-TV movie that was quickly forgotten. Then the firestorm's 10-year anniversary was overshadowed by 9/11. Today, local news reports marking the anniversary are more likely to promote fire prevention measures than attempt to convey the force and speed with which the firestorm overtook residents of the Oakland and Berkeley hills.
The Oakland Firestorm Mural is unchallenged as a visual representation of the event and its aftermath, going where cameras cannot — a multiplicity of survivor memories.
The Firestorm Community Mural Project was conceived by Brooke Levin, who was then assistant to Oakland Mayor Elihu Harris and is now the city's assistant director of facilities. The mural was sponsored by the Office of the Oakland Mayor and the Cultural Arts Division, City of Oakland, the Oakland Community Fund, Bay Area Rapid Transit, Pro Arts, and community volunteers. It was dedicated in October 1994.
The project was coordinated by Gail Smithwalter, who also contributed photos to the book, "Mapping the Terrain: New Genre Public Art" (1994). This slideshow is dedicated to Smithwalter, who was killed in an auto accident in 2002.
10:01
KTVU coverage of 2nd Oakland Hills Fireby giantlew1,968 views- 5:56
1991 Oakland Firestorm in Claremont Canyonby elliot222889,115 views
- 1:37
Oakland Firestorm Evacuation 1991by katherinevictoria19,398 views
- 5:14
Oakland fire 1991.movby happygolucky77777771,484 views
- 3:56
Oakland Fires 1991by BPStockFootage8,548 views
- 9:31
Oakland Hills Firestorm 1991 - Aftermath Footage Part #1by chicoman985,897 views
- 0:57
News10 Nightside Open 1991by 10TVMan5,677 views
- 5:20
Earthquake & Fire Memorialby oaklandish2,840 views
- 2:31
Flashing back to the perfect firestormby vhilaire4,445 views
- 7:40
Remembering Oakland Hills 20 Years Laterby CalEMATV368 views
- 8:45
Oakland Fire \\\\ 1991by crofesser1,019 views
- 7:59
Flaming Illusions of Realityby zskymusic174 views
- 9:39
Oakland Hills Firestorm 1991 - Aftermath Footage Part #2by chicoman981,758 views
- 2:31
Berkeley Viewby basykes138 views
- 6:03
Eddie Pasternak Trio with Stan Getzby eddiepasternak1,442 views
- 1:19
oakland_fire.wmvby unioncentrics2,289 views
- 1:08
Fire in the Oakland Hillsby BloomTV2,308 views
- 21:41
Fire In The Hillsby nfpadotorg1,498 views
- 4:45
Loma Prieta Earthquake Live - KXTV News 10by 10TVMan383,515 views
- 5:36
Trivium - Conflagrationby dmforge622,886 views
I walk by this every day.
Johnnyred51 1 month ago