Incredible story of heroic brain surgeon who saved his entire Malibu street from LA’s wildfires holding flames at bay for five nights

A brain surgeon is being hailed a hero after saving his entire Malibu street from the devastation of the LA wildfires by keeping the raging flames at bay for five nights.

Chester Griffiths, 62, had just finished performing brain surgery when he rushed to his car and drove through Los Angeles to save his beachside home from a fire.

In a scene reminiscent of a Hollywood blockbuster, he joined forces with two other neighbors to fight tooth and nail to save their homes after informing his son and others on his street of his plan of action.

When the inferno ripped through their sunny cul-de-sac, turning the surrounding homes into ash and rubble, the trio sprang into action.

Over the next five harrowing days and nights, they managed to defend six homes from the raging fire, even as hurricane winds tossed flaming embers the size of footballs through the air.

“At one point I started packing my car and that’s when I decided I wasn’t going to let my house burn down no matter what happened,” Griffiths’ neighbor Clayton Colbert said. The Telegraph.

Armed with fire hoses, shovels and N95 masks, the three men held the fire at bay in what many would call a miraculous feat of determination.

The stakes couldn’t have been higher.

By mid-week, the fire, caused by 80 mph winds, began devouring homes on Topanga Beach Drive and within minutes two adjacent homes went up in flames.

One erupted when eucalyptus trees exploded nearby; another lit “like a Roman candle.”

‘Everything came this way. The fire coming this way, the smoke, the embers in the air, the wind was unbelievable,” Colbert added, calling the scenes “almost apocalyptic.”

As houses collapsed around them, the men climbed onto roofs, using hoses to douse the flames and shovels to choke hot spots with dirt and sand.

The wind was so strong that they were blown over several times, but still they kept going.

In terrifying footage of the men’s battle against the fires, the surgeon can be seen taking a deep breath as he looks through the window at the orange flames roaring just meters away.

He can be heard begging the captain of a nearby fire crew for a drop of water, but the response was devastating.

Griffiths was told that they were all grounded, and even aircraft were ruled out.

Without wasting time, the surgeon returned to the thick smoke and made the call that they would have to fight the flames themselves.

The determined father-of-two, along with his son Chester, 24, and neighbor Colbert, fought tirelessly to save their homes.

With hoses, a water cannon and even help from firefighters on the ground, they managed to prevent the flames from entering their neighborhood.

The medical professional insists he felt no fear during the ordeal because he is a surgeon and is used to being in situations where he is forced to rely on training and preparedness when he finds himself in the middle of a difficult situation.

And even the group’s exit strategy was meticulously planned, with the trio setting aside paddleboards ready to head straight into the ocean if necessary.

Griffith’s son Chester described his father as the driving force behind their survival.

“Honestly, this was all under my father’s direction. He’s been preparing for this for so long. He’s a champion; he has a warrior mentality,” he said.

But for neighbor Colbert, battling the flames came at a cost, both physically and emotionally.

Speaking to the newspaper, the sleepless 62-year-old admitted he had lost track of time, only realizing his scheduled kidney surgery was that same day.

Colbert spent the first ten hours alone as the fire approached from the east and devoured everything in its path, including the nearby Reel Inn fishing shack, a beloved local spot.

But he soon received a telephone evacuation warning, which he bravely ignored as he decided to fight the fire to save his home.

However, Colbert’s efforts were not without danger.

At one point his hair caught fire, although he joked about the outcome, claiming that it looked like he had a full head of hair even though it was all just ash.

Griffiths bought his property in 2005 and the family moved there four years later.

At the time, they had tried to make it fireproof by building sprinklers into the roof with cement tiles instead of wooden tiles.

The brain surgeon, who is also a doctor for the LA Kings hockey team, said if one thing can come from the devastating tragedy, he wants people to get to know their neighbors.

He claims the trio could only carry out the immense operation because they are part of a close-knit community.

“This whole thing is a tragedy beyond apocalyptic proportions. “I’m so sad,” he told the newspaper.

While he was grateful that the families and their homes could be kept safe thanks to his efforts and those of neighbors, he stressed that the outcome could have been very different.

“I made a video the first night of our house, recording memories in every room,” he said.