The Char Man | Ep. 60

Things are about to heat up – and not just because it’s just about summer time!

This week, we head to Ojai, California and talk about a popular urban legend, The Char Man. The legend tells of a man, burned beyond recognition, that stalks and terrorizes Char Man Bridge and Camp Comfort.

We also break down the four origin stories. Which one is true? Could ANY of them be true? Listen now to find out!

What’s up Bizarros?

This week we dive into the legend of the Ojai Char Man.  

At a bridge just north of Camp Comfort there is a vengeful spirit known as the Char Man. 

If you find yourself at this bridge you can summon this vengeful creature by getting out of the car yelling “Help me! Help me!”

Out of the shadows, a badly burned man will begin aggressively charging you.  Blackened skin peeling away from his body, oozing, seeping sores, soiled bandages covering the grotesque unhealing flesh as his hand is outstretched towards you. Stretching. Reaching. Trying to grab your skin.  

If you are caught he will try to peel the skin off of your body to replace his own burned, rotting flesh.

It’s a terrifying image and one that has left people traumatized. 

Unfortunately, this bridge is not the only known spot that the Char Man inhabits.  He is said to roam the grounds of Camp Comfort, terrorizing young campers and the staff, much like Jason Voohries.

Who is the Char Man, and why does he haunt this area in Ojai, California?

One story that could explain how the Char Man came to be starts in 1948.

A massive fire burned through the Ojai Valley.  It took 1500 firefighters to get the fire under control but not before it destroyed 30,000 acres, 13 homes, and a cabin tucked into the woods.

In this cabin lived a father and son.  Before they could evacuate their cabin the fire had engulfed them.  The father succumbed to the fire, but the son was able to escape but was badly burned.

Unable to deal with the condition the fire had left him in, and watching his father being burned alive before him, his sanity began to crack.

He began to cut away the burned flesh of his father, thinking this would bring him back to life. 

Unable to bring his father back from the dead he hung his flayed and burned corpse from a nearby tree where the police would find him hanging a few days later.

Finding this horrific scene the police began patrolling the area to find out who did this.  As they began searching an inhuman scream came from a nearby area and the son, burned beyond recognition burst from his hiding spot running towards the burned shell of the woods.

Despite being badly burned, the son moved faster than someone in his condition should have been able to. 

The officers began to give chase but were overcome by the smell and were unable to continue. 

Another possible origin story suggests that it was a husband and wife who were trapped in a house fire.  In their desperate attempt to escape the sweltering heat that was causing blisters to form on their skin, the husband was pinned by falling debris.

As he laid their his wife was burned alive.  “Help me! Help me!” she cried but the husband, as much as he struggled couldn’t save his wife.  She burned to death right in front of his eyes as he laid impotently, unable to do anything. 

But perhaps the most possible origin story is about a man in the 1960’s suffering from skin cancer.  The case was so bad that his face and arms had become disfigured.

Due to becoming disfigured he pulled away from society, only coming out at night. But even at this time, he was out during his strolls, he would receive hurtful remarks from people calling him Char Man.

Being more discreet he would walk the woods around Camp Comfort.  The teens who saw him would become scared and call him Char Man.  Deciding to lean into the fate that he had been given he started chasing the kids, giving them a good scare.

What do you think Bizarros?

Is the Char Man the son who survived the Ojai forest fire of 1948?  Or was it the husband that watched his wife burn alive without being able to help?  Or was it someone who was dealing with a horrible disease, teased by local kids, and became an Urband Legend?

Is the Char Man Believable?