Viewpoint:The Palisades Fire: A Preventable Tragedy and the Failure of Los Angeles Leadership

During the Palisades Fire, these residents saved 73 of 75 condos using a garden hose.

By ADAM KNOWLTON

The Palisades Fire, which erupted on January 7, 2025, was not an act of nature beyond human control—it was a preventable catastrophe caused by failed leadership at the highest levels of Los Angeles city government.

This devastating blaze resulted in the loss of at least 12 lives and the destruction of nearly 8,000 structures, with Pacific Palisades suffering irreparable damage. The responsibility for this disaster falls squarely on the shoulders of Mayor Karen Bass, whose self-absorption, exhibited by traveling to Ghana on a boondoggle for the Presidential Inauguration, and gross negligence in the weeks leading up to the fire and failures in crisis management exacerbated the destruction.

A Known and Widely Reported Fire Threat

In the week leading up to the fire, multiple local and national news outlets warned of the convergence of three critical wildfire risk factors set to begin on January 6-7:

1. Santa Ana Winds reaching speeds equivalent to a Category 2 hurricane (96-110 mph), creating an extremely dangerous fire environment.
2. Severe drought conditions, with no measurable precipitation for nearly a year, leaving dry vegetation primed to ignite.
3. Extremely low humidity (below 10%), exacerbating fire spread potential.

Despite these dire warnings, Mayor Bass failed to take any proactive measures to mitigate the fire risk. Instead of focusing on public safety, she traveled to Ghana for a ceremonial event—the Ghanaian Presidential Inauguration—a move that now stands as an appalling dereliction of duty.

What Should Have Been Done?

Had Mayor Bass been proactive, she would have taken the following critical steps to prepare for the nationally reported fire risk:

• Convened an emergency Zoom meeting with Fire Chief Kristin Crowley and all local fire chiefs to coordinate fire prevention strategies, including requesting all chiefs to create a wish list of prevention measures for discussion and implementation.
• Pre-positioned firefighting resources throughout the high-risk areas.
• Deployed aerial fire retardant strategically to create firebreaks and slow the spread of potential fires (since it was known the high Santa Ana winds would ground any aerial assault on a fire).
• Issued public warnings and preparedness plans to ensure residents were ready.

None of these measures were taken. Instead, the city was left completely unprepared when the fire erupted on January 7. The above actions, if taken, would not have been extraordinary, but instead only base line competency. In short, Mayor Bass’ failure to take any proactive measures was truly objective incompetence.

Additionally, the city’s fire unpreparedness was further exacerbated by a $17.5 million cut to the fire department budget. Mayor Bass has argued that these budget cuts did not impact the city’s ability to prevent, mitigate, or respond to the Palisades wildfire. However, Fire Chief Crowley directly disputed this claim.

In the months leading up to the fire, Fire Chief Crowley issued a memorandum warning that budget cuts were creating “unprecedented operational challenges” and compromising the fire department’s ability to respond effectively.  Freddy Escobar, the president of the local firefighters’ union, emphasized that the budget cuts also contributed to many non-operational trucks and engines further impairing the fire department’s ability to fight the Palisades wildfire.

To make matters worse, the 117-million-gallon Santa Ynez reservoir—built specifically to protect Pacific Palisades from wildfires—was drained in early 2024 for repairs that remain incomplete to this day. The reservoir was built specifically to protect Pacific Palisades in the event of fires.

A Chaotic and Deadly Evacuation

The failures of leadership did not end with a lack of any preparation. Once the fire ignited, Los Angeles officials mishandled the evacuation process, leading to chaos and unnecessary losses.

A mandatory evacuation order was issued the morning of January 7, but residents attempting to flee encountered “Carmageddon.” Police officers, instead of facilitating the evacuation, blocked residents from leaving in an attempt to clear lanes for emergency vehicles. The gridlock was so severe that residents were forced to drive on both sides of the street and ultimately abandon their cars at the direction of LAPD. The city then had to deploy a bulldozer just to clear a lane for police and firefighters—a logistical nightmare that further delayed the emergency response.

The Firefighters Were Ordered to Stand Down

As detailed in a May 15, 2025, Circling the News article, and perhaps the most damning failure was the city’s decision to Stand Down and not fight the fire.

How do we know this? Residents who defied the mandatory evacuation order and remained behind to protect their homes saw no firefighters.

John Carr, a longtime Palisades resident, saved his home and two neighboring houses using only a garden hose. His viral YouTube video, ‘Worth fighting for.’ During Palisades Fire, resident defied evacuation orders and saved his home” confirms that “I didn’t see one single fire truck out here at all. Zero.” He adds, “If they had had some fire trucks and just put a squirt here, a squirt there and kept on eye on things, all these houses would be here now. I’m telling you right now I saw it with my own eyeballs. All these houses. The houses behind me they’re all gone. They started with one little spark, one little small fire. They just squirted those out, had a few people out there, they’d all be here now.” Link https://youtu.be/7-qeaSePudA?si=-Lh1uuFwXiVwBKgP

See several homeowner accounts in May 15, 2025 Circling the News article:

“Jones said the LAFD spokesperson should have let the media know early on Tuesday that ‘they weren’t going to be in the way of the fire and the rest of us, so we could have avoided the unspeakable tragedy.’”

“In Rustic Canyon, Kevin and Sydney Light watched firefighters, “watch” the fires.

“By the second day, the winds had died down,” … “There were numerous spot fires,” Kevin said, but those fires were put out by neighbors with garden hoses.

“On Syndey’s shift, she saw a two-story home on Rustic now fully engulfed. She asked the firefighters on site to spray water on the home that was directly next to it, an all-wood structure. She pleaded with them, “Please put water on Alby’s home.”

“Firefighters told here that ‘we are ordered to ‘stand down’ and since there was no water in the hydrants, we are supposed to only use water to save someone if they are in a home or if we can save a house.”

“She pulled out her phone to start filming them and then ‘they reluctantly watered it down,’ Syndey said. Alby’s house was saved.”

“When Syndey returned, Kevin took his turn on the watch. “On East Rustic Road, there were five fire trucks just standing there,” he said.”

• Another resident’s sons saved their home— by squirting embers with a garden hose. They, too, saw no fire trucks, except for a brief photo-op appearance by firefighters on Tuesday afternoon (4:06 p.m.). After the photo-op, they left the area without conducting any firefighting activities, never to return. (see photo below)
• A resident at Sea Ridge Condos (Condo community at base of Palisades Drive) saved 73 out of 75 units with just a garden hose and a ladder and one neighbor, while fire trucks remained stationed 300 yards away, refusing to help despite residents’ pleas. (see photo)
• “The bottom-line, people who ignored the evacuation order and those who snuck back in, were able to use garden hoses and save their homes and maybe their neighbor’s homes, too.” May 15, 2025 Circling the News article.

A photographer for CalFire captured this truck during the Palisades Fire.

The City and Fire Department Abandoned Its Residents

The grim reality is that homeowners who ignored the mandatory evacuation order and fought the fire themselves saved their homes, while those who followed official orders lost everything. The message from the city is clear: you are on your own for even the most basic public services. Obeying government directives may cost you your home, your possessions, and even your life.

This catastrophic failure of leadership is why renowned developer Rick Caruso and some homeowners hired private firefighters—a decision that proved prescient given the city’s inability to protect its citizens.

The Consequences and the Cover-Up

Faced with mounting public outrage, Mayor Bass fired Fire Chief Kristin Crowley on February 21, 2025, in a transparent attempt to shift blame and evade accountability for her own failures. While Chief Crowley bears responsibility for the fire department’s poor response, the ultimate responsibility lies with Mayor Bass, who abandoned Los Angeles at a time of greatest need.

The Demand for New Leadership

Los Angeles deserves a mayor who prioritizes public safety over political posturing and personal trips abroad. The Palisades Fire was not an unavoidable disaster—it was a failure of leadership, preparation, and execution. The city deserves better.