Historic World War II-Era Hangar Destroyed by Massive Fire in California

The hangar was not only a historical structure but was also used by filmmakers in Hollywood, appearing in TV shows and movies including "Pearl Harbor" and "Star Trek."

A relentless fire tore through a massive blimp hangar late Tuesday in California that dated back to World War II, officials have detailed.

The hangar is located in the city of Tustin, California, which is about 35 miles southeast of Los Angeles at the Naval Air Station Santa Ana - a base established for blimp operations in 1942. With at least two historic hangars at this site, the one that burned is referred to as the North Hangar.

Orange County Fire Authority first responded to the flames after 1:30 a.m. local time, US media reported. The hangar, which is one of the largest wooden structures ever built in the 20th Century, stands at 17 stories high, and is over 1,000 feet long and 300 feet wide.

Due to the dynamic nature of the fire, and the imminent danger of collapse, we have determined the most operationally sound method is to allow the structure to collapse, at which point ground crews can move in closer, and aggressively work to extinguish the fire. pic.twitter.com/SmBl2UahMB

— OCFA PIO (@OCFireAuthority) November 7, 2023

After fighting the three-alarm fire, officials allowed the building to collapse due to safety concerns and determined it as being the most “operationally sound method.”

For at least 70 firefighters, efforts were made even more difficult by the lack of water at the scene; the crew had to access hydrants from a nearby street.

Authorities said that no lives were at risk during the blaze, and no injuries nor evacuations were reported.

"We expect the fire will continue to burn for several hours, possibly even several days," said OCFA Fire Chief Brian Fennessy, adding that the cause of the fire was under investigation. "It's a sad day for the city of Tustin and all of Orange County. But we are fortunate that no injuries have been reported and we are in a position to extinguish the blaze."

Raging fire destroys massive World War II-era blimp hangar in Southern California

The wooden building is 17 stories tall, over 1,000 feet long and 300 feet wide. It was originally built in 1942 to store large blimps that the U.S. Navy used to patrol the southern California… pic.twitter.com/LD4jZUoigh

— mishikasingh (@mishika_singh) November 8, 2023

The south blimp hangar stands as the north hangar burns at the former Marine Corps Air Station #tustin #blimphangar #blimp #marinecorps @ocregister pic.twitter.com/NdOAkaUJTd

— Jeff Gritchen 🇺🇸 (@jeffgritchen) November 7, 2023

Fennessy also indicated that authorities had used three helicopters to aid in their efforts to extinguish the blaze, to no avail.

“We can’t get close enough to that building without concerns of it collapsing on our firefighters,” the chief said. “Our use of aircraft on a structure like this, that’s extraordinary.”

Recently, officials in Tustin had been in contact with the US Navy in hopes of collaborating to preserve the hangars, which were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. Besides being a historic structure, the hangars were also used in television and film productions including: JAG, The X-Field, Austin Powers, Pearl Harbor and Star Trek.