Pacific Palisades resident had trouble evacuating during The Palisades Fire.
L.A. County’s 132-page report about the January 7 fires in Altadena and Pacific Palisades compiled by the McChrystal Group was released today September 25.
The After Action Report notes that the report does not investigate wrongdoing or assign blame, rather it looks at actions that happened during the fire, such as the County’s alert system and evacuation. click here.
The report’s Executive Summary noted “The review identified no single point of failure related to how the alerts, warnings, notifications and evacuations were conducted.”
First, it examined if residents had been warned in advance about the possibility of severe weather conditions. The report concluded residents have been warned through broadcasts and news outlets. “On the morning of January 7, updates from local news outlets were punctuated with reports of fires igniting in various locations, the critically severe fire weather conditions and the life-threating windstorm sweeping through Southern California.”
Next the report looked at evacuations. It noted that many “alert and notification services are opt-in, which, although openly available to the public do not reach every resident. . . .issues with opt-in and universal emergency alert notification systems are exacerbated by their reliance on adequate cellular, radio and Wi-Fi signals, and coverage, and most importantly commercial power. . . .they do not work when there is poor cellular coverage or when commercial power is lost to an area.”
Pacific Palisades residents know that cell phones don’t work in parts of the Palisades even when there is not an emergency.
One of the recommendations from residents to the McChrystal Group was “the importance of employing low-tech alert methods – such as blow horns, loudspeakers and neighborhood sirens.”
Many residents believed that sirens were essential “especially in areas where power or cellular service may fail.”
Palisadians received their first alert to evacuate through a LAFD City Alert at 1:39 p.m. on January 7. But many living in the Highlands were not alerted even when the fire was in their “back yard.”
The report also found that there was a lack of community preparedness “it is essential for everyone to take responsibility for their own safety and well-being during emergencies.” It was recommended that individuals and families should prepare an emergency plan that considers specific risks and vulnerabilities for where they live and regularly discuss and practice the plan and that “a buddy system be implemented for people with access and functional needs. This would ensure that vulnerable individuals have neighbors or community members assigned to assist them during evacuation.”
This editor wonder if that statement was targeted at people in Altadena, because Palisadians have evacuated before and know about the “to-go bag” and looking out for neighbors.
The firm that prepared this plan is located in Virginia and seemed to lack knowledge about the topography of Pacific Palisades. In preparing an evacuation route, a person fleeing basically can choose between Sunset Boulevard, Temescal Canyon Road or Chautauqua.
In this County report, it noted that “the Sheriff’s Department was unable to manage traffic or provide clear evacuation directions to resident.” Once L.A. City’s report comes out, it seems that the failure to direct traffic may also be a key issue that needs to be addressed by L.A. City.
During an emergency, the Los Angeles County Fire Department, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) and the Los Angeles County of Office of Emergency Management (OES) must work together. The report found that the roles are not fully defined or stated in policies, which can lead to duplications or to the failure of one department to have the stated responsibilities.
The County’s OES, which is responsible for disaster planning, preparedness, response and recovery has a staff of 37 and no dedicated operating budget. By comparison San Diego County has a staffing level of 43, with a $12.3 million budget and Cook County Illinois has a staff of 54, with a $131,653 budget.
There were also shortages of county law enforcement personnel. “While these staffing deficiencies significantly hampered response capabilities, they reflect broader systemic resource challenges from a shortage in staffing due to more than 900 LASD deputy vacancies,” the report noted.
The report suggests that the County’s next step is to conduct an After-Action Planning meeting to ensure suggestions are put into practice.
The Palisades and Eaton Fires burned more than 37,000 acres, destroyed more than 16,000 businesses and homes and killed 31 people. Countywide economic losses are projected at $9 billion over five years, with property damage estimated between $28 billion and $53.8 billion.
This was around 12:30 p.m. as buses tried to reach Marquez Elementary at the start of the Palisades Fire on January 7, 2025.
Who knew blow horns and loudspeakers were cutting-edge tech? Love that Virginia firms deep dive into Palisades topography – must have gotten its map from a satellite photo! Seriously though, its funny how during an emergency, your only options are Sunset Boulevard, Temescal Canyon Road, or Chautauqua, like were picking a ride at the county fair. And lets give it up for the L.A. County OES, running on 37 people and a budget smaller than most neighborhood bake sales. Talk about multitasking! But hey, at least we know who to call when our buddy system neighbor forgets to grab our to-go bag. Now, if only the siren would wake me up before I hit Temescal…metal injection molding
Our street, Giardino, went up after an ember flew from Highlands or therabouts and landed in the Getty grounds. Those grounds historically have been poorly maintained and the dry brush quickly ignited and took out all of the houses that backed up to it save for one at the top of the street.
1:39 alert was WAY too late. We left on our own at 12:00 PM and were caught in gridlock traffic on PCH.
Who knew blow horns and loudspeakers were cutting-edge tech? Love that Virginia firms deep dive into Palisades topography – must have gotten its map from a satellite photo! Seriously though, its funny how during an emergency, your only options are Sunset Boulevard, Temescal Canyon Road, or Chautauqua, like were picking a ride at the county fair. And lets give it up for the L.A. County OES, running on 37 people and a budget smaller than most neighborhood bake sales. Talk about multitasking! But hey, at least we know who to call when our buddy system neighbor forgets to grab our to-go bag. Now, if only the siren would wake me up before I hit Temescal.remove watermarks ai