MARCH 2025. Blues Vol 41 No.3

AROUND THE COUNTRYLOS

AROUND THE COUNTRYLOS ANGELES, CA.L.A. Fire Dept. could have pre-deployed 10engines to Palisades but didn't due to budget cuts.By Joel B. PollakThe Los Angeles Fire Department(LAFD) could have predeployed ten engines to thePacific Palisades ahead of thedeadly Palisades Fire on January7, but chose not to, accordingto former fire chiefs quotedby the Los Angeles Times.As Breitbart News has reported,the LAFD, led by Chief KristinCrowley, apparently declined topre-deploy resources on January6, ahead of extreme winds,because of budget cuts thatmade the department reluctantto pay overtime.The Los Angeles Times addsthat it took 18 minutes for firefightersto respond to the first911 call about the brush fire thatbecame the massive PalisadesFire. By then, it was almost toolate to stop the wind from fanningthe first flames.The Times reported the LAFDcould have sent at least 10additional engines to the Palisadesbefore the fire — enginesthat could have been on patrolalong the hillsides and canyons,several former top officials forthe department told The Times.The Palisades fire’s toll might58 The BLUES - MARCH ‘25not have been as bad if extraengines had been pre-positionedmuch closer to the mostfire-prone areas than the twoPalisades stations, the ex-chiefssaid.They also noted that LAFDofficials pre-deployed significantlyfewer engines citywideon Jan. 7 than they did in responseto wind warnings inprevious years, including 2011,2013 and 2019.Mayor Karen Bass ousted FireChief Kristin Crowley on Friday,Feb. 21, amid tensions betweenthe two over the way this year'sdeadly fires were handled.Bass said that she had decidedto fire Crowley “in the bestinterests of Los Angeles’ publicsafety, and for the operationsof the Los Angeles Fire Department."“We know that 1,000 firefightersthat could have beenon duty on the morning thefires broke out were insteadsent home on Chief Crowley’swatch," the mayor said in astatement.Crowley's removal was effectiveimmediately, the mayorsaid.

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