Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Friday requested a full investigation into revelations that firefighters were ordered to leave a smoldering burn site days before it reignited into the Palisades fire, calling the news \u201ctremendously alarming.\u201d <\/p>\n
In a letter to interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva, Bass asked that he \u201cthoroughly investigate\u201d a report by The Times about the Los Angeles Fire Department\u2019s missteps in putting out a small brush fire that federal authorities say was intentionally set on New Year\u2019s Day. The previously undisclosed details have prompted fresh outrage among those who lost homes in the worst fire in city history. <\/p>\n
\u201cA full understanding of the Lachman fire response is essential to an accurate accounting of what occurred during the January wildfires,\u201d Bass wrote. <\/p>\n
Bass had said in a statement late Thursday that her office has been \u201cleading a series of reforms\u201d in the LAFD, including strengthening pre-deployment protocols, upgrading technology and expanding training for all staff. <\/p>\n
Her handling of the blaze and its aftermath is expected to be a significant issue in next year\u2019s mayoral race, with her main opponent, Austin Beutner, calling on her to provide a thorough accounting of what happened through an independent commission comprising \u201crespected members of our city.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMayor Bass is asking the Fire Department to investigate itself. That won\u2019t get us to the truth we need,\u201d he said in a prepared statement. \u201cThe Commission should look into the actions of the Fire Department, the Department of Water and Power, other relevant departments and City Hall officials. Provide the commission with the budget and authority to ask tough questions, gather the facts and make recommendations.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Times reported this week that crews mopping up the Jan. 1 Lachman fire warned a battalion chief that the ground was still smoldering and rocks remained hot to the touch, according to text exchanges reviewed by The Times. However, firefighters were ordered to pack up and leave the scene anyway.<\/p>\n
Federal investigators say the Lachman fire was deliberately set and had burned underground in a canyon root system until the winds rekindled it on Jan. 7.<\/p>\n
In one text message reported in The Times, a firefighter who was at the scene on Jan. 2 wrote that the battalion chief had been told it was a \u201cbad idea\u201d to leave because of the visible signs of smoldering terrain which crews feared could start a new fire if left unprotected. \u201cAnd the rest is history,\u201d the firefighter wrote in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
A second firefighter was told that tree stumps were still hot at the location when the crew packed up and left, according to the texts. And a third firefighter said this month that crew members were upset when told to pack up and leave, but that they could not ignore orders, according to the texts. The third firefighter also wrote that he and his colleagues knew immediately that the Jan. 7 fire was a rekindle of the Jan. 1 blaze.<\/p>\n
The LAFD has not answered questions about the firefighter accounts in the text messages, but has previously said that officials did everything they could to ensure the Lachman fire was fully extinguished. They have not provided dispatch records of all firefighting and mop-up activity before Jan. 7. The battalion chief listed as being on duty the day firefighters were ordered to leave the Lachman fire, Mario Garcia, did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n
Beutner, a former Los Angeles Unified schools superintendent whose home was seriously damaged in the Palisades fire, said in an interview that the new details are a reflection of poor leadership.<\/p>\n
\u201cCommanding the fire crew on duty to leave something where they raised objections? To me, that\u2019s not responsible,\u201d he said. \u201cBut ultimately, where does the buck stop for this? \u2026 I\u2019d like to hear from the mayor. How she\u2019s accountable. What has she learned?\u201d<\/p>\n