CA - Pacific Palisades - 30,000 People Ordered to Evacuate From L.A. Wildfires #2

[iamshadow21]

Thank you. Fabulous article (I went to the full article linked at your provided link).

Edgar McGregor is the young man's name. 24 years old, he has a following of about 7,500 local people of all ages. He is described as dispassionate, as opposed to being an alarmist. He studied climate science at San José State University, interned at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and currently works for Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation.

He watches the weather conditions closely ... and he told his Altadena followers not to sleep that night, get their important documents together, park their cars in the driveway facing toward the road, get ready to go.

Then later said fire had ignited in Eaton Canyon, this is not a drill. People listened, they prepared, they left. They saved themselves, their children, their cats, their dogs. And they have the highest of praise for Edgar and his early warning.

Thank you for the summary, I'm still unable to read full articles without subscribing, so I appreciate it.

 

[iamshadow21]

Over 150 staff at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab have lost their homes.

150 staff at major NASA center lose their homes

The wildfires on Tuesday affected over 150 staff at one of NASA's major centers, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which homes Mars rovers and manages many of

www.nbcnews.com

 

[SouthAussie]

FEMA has already dispersed ...... more than $8 million for immediate needs like water, food, baby formula and gas. The initial money goes directly into bank accounts, regional FEMA administrator Robert J. Fenton, Jr. said Tuesday, denying misinformation about vouchers.

Nine people have been charged with looting, including a group that stole an Emmy award from a house that had been evacuated .... Another pair took more than $200,000 worth of items in a neighborhood filled with mansions

And three people were arrested outside the fire zones since Sunday for starting small fires, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said. The fires were spotted by alert citizens and quickly extinguished. One person was using a barbecue lighter to start fires. Another lit a trash can on fire. The third was caught lighting brush on fire.

What to know about the devastation from the Los Angeles-area fires

More than a week into what could be the costliest wildfires in U.S. history, weary and anxious Los Angeles-area residents are hoping for a favorable shift in the winds and an end to the constant fear that their lives might be further upended.

apnews.com

 

[iamshadow21]

Sounds like Chuck Hart and his crew, who featured in a video I linked a few days ago, are still out there doing their best in the Palisades.

California fires: LA fire crews make progress as officials expect ‘much-needed break’ from dangerous weather – as it happened

Firefighters report gains in containing Eaton and Palisades fires; more than 120,000 people still without power

www.theguardian.com

Over 1000 prisoners and 127 prison staff were fighting fires overnight.

Over 1,000 inmates worked to contain wildfires overnight

More than 1,000 prisoners and 127 prison staff were working to contain the wildfires overnight, according to the California Department of Corrections & Rehabili

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Dotta]

"Los Angeles fire union chief
breaks down on live TV
as he reveals shocking truth about department."

Los Angeles fire union chief breaks down as he reveals shocking truth

The Los Angeles United Firefighters president broke down in tears on live TV as he reveals the truth behind their limited response to the catastrophic LA fires.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[SouthAussie]

"Los Angeles fire union chief
breaks down on live TV
as he reveals shocking truth about department."

View attachment 557738

Los Angeles fire union chief breaks down as he reveals shocking truth

The Los Angeles United Firefighters president broke down in tears on live TV as he reveals the truth behind their limited response to the catastrophic LA fires.

www.dailymail.co.uk

The LA times says it is just not true that their budget was cut.

In November, the City Council approved $53,000,000 more in additional salary costs.

By then, they had also signed off on $58,000,000 for new firetrucks and other dept purchases.

Their operating budget actually grew by 7% over the previous fiscal year.

Their annual operating budget is now going to exceed $950,000,000.

The starting salary for a firefighter is $85,315 and will reach $90,514 in the coming months - this does not include overtime and bonuses.

The Council is also expecting to allocate $27,000,000 for fire department transportations of MediCal patients by their paramedics.

(Obviously, all of this money is coming out of the taxpayers pockets. How much will they like to pay in increased taxes? Maybe after these fires, they will be happy to pay more. And maybe they need to close some tax loopholes, so wealthy people and corporations pay a fair share of taxes, instead of stuffing increased profits into their pockets. IDK imo )

Did Mayor Karen Bass really cut the fire department budget? The answer gets tricky

Employee raises and other expenses are expanding the Los Angeles Fire Department's budget. At the same time, the agency has had to scale back operations in recent months.

www.latimes.com

 

[Dotta]

The LA times says it is just not true that their budget was cut.

In November, the City Council approved $53,000,000 more in additional salary costs.

By then, they had also signed off on $58,000,000 for new firetrucks and other dept purchases.

Their operating budget actually grew by 7% over the previous fiscal year.

Their annual operating budget is now going to exceed $950,000,000.

The starting salary for a firefighter is $85,315 and will reach $90,514 in the coming months - this does not include overtime and bonuses.

The Council is also expecting to allocate $27,000,000 for fire department transportations of MediCal patients by their paramedics.

(Obviously, all of this money is coming out of the taxpayers pockets. How much will they like to pay in increased taxes? Maybe after these fires, they will be happy to pay more. And maybe they need to close some tax loopholes, so wealthy people and corporations pay a fair share of taxes, instead of stuffing increased profits into their pockets. IDK imo )

Did Mayor Karen Bass really cut the fire department budget? The answer gets tricky

Employee raises and other expenses are expanding the Los Angeles Fire Department's budget. At the same time, the agency has had to scale back operations in recent months.

www.latimes.com

Hmmm....

IMO
In such terrain, large population, fire hazard/flammable houses, rampant/not cleared underbrush and climate conditions
the actions concerning firefighting should be more proactive.

The very fact that prisoners (link in post nr 184) had to be employed to fight fires is veeeery telling

Besides,
fire union chief seems to be the right person to express his opinion in these matters, no?

If not him, then who???

Times are a'changing,
climate is changing.
Attitudes should be changing too.

JMO

 

[DS2021]

Incidents | CAL FIRE

www.fire.ca.gov

 

[iamshadow21]

Excellent, comprehensive and multifaceted article delving deep into the incarcerated firefighter program.

‘Running to danger and saving lives’: 1,000 incarcerated firefighters are on the LA frontlines

The jobs are highly coveted, offering training and reduced sentences, but face criticism over low wages

www.theguardian.com

 

[arielilane]

Upcoming Benefit Concert For L.A. Wildfires Gets Overwhelming Response From Artists, Bands

The upcoming benefit concert for Los Angeles wildfire victims will be exciting, engaging and will raise a ton of money ... and big-name artists and bands are clamoring for a chance to help out.

www.tmz.com

1/14/2025

 

[slowpoke]

L.A. fire officials could have put engines in Palisades before the fire broke out. They didn’t​

As the Los Angeles Fire Department faced extraordinary warnings of life-threatening winds, top commanders decided not to assign for emergency deployment roughly 1,000 available firefighters and dozens of water-carrying engines in advance of the fire that destroyed much of the Pacific Palisades and continues to burn, interviews and internal LAFD records show.

Fire officials chose not to order the firefighters to remain on duty for a second shift last Tuesday as the winds were building — which would have doubled the personnel on hand — and staffed just five of more than 40 engines that are available to aid in battling wildfires, according to the records obtained by The Times, as well as interviews with LAFD officials and former chiefs with knowledge of city operations.

The department only started calling up more firefighters and deploying those additional engines after the Palisades blaze was burning out of control.

No extra engines had been placed in the Palisades, where the fire broke out about 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 7, officials said. The department pre-positioned nine engines to the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood that were already on duty, expecting that fires might break out there. Officials said they moved more engines “first thing in the morning” to also cover northeast L.A.

L.A. fire officials could have put engines in the Palisades before the fire broke out. They didn't

Fire officials made the critical decision to forgo calling in scores of extra firefighters and equipment in the hours before the fire, according to internal documents reviewed by The Times.

www.latimes.com

I looked back to an article of the same publication, LA Times, dated Jan 6, the day before the Palisades and Eaton fires started. Some things it said: (LINK)

Rich Thompson (weather service meteorologist) said.
Anywhere in L.A. County outside of the Antelope Valley — from the mountains to the coast, ... be ready to take action if a fire does break out during this event.
—-
Brent Pascua, a battalion chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said:
Officials said they are coordinating with the weather service to best prepare for both wind damage and possible fires. Cal Fire has been pre-positioning resources and increasing staffing across Southern California ahead of the winds.
—-
Capt. Erik Scott, a spokesperson for the LA Fire Dept. said:
In Los Angeles, crews are setting up additional resources near high-fire zones and making contingency plans for what to do if an emergency does arise.
—-
The alert is in effect for most of Tuesday and Wednesday across the majority of L.A. and Ventura counties.
—-
————-
A few thoughts I have—
The later LA Times article is dated Jan 14, a week after the fires started. Of course there are always things that could have been done better. In any given situation.

But looking at the article dated the day before the fires broke out, they were taking the weather event seriously and had plans for action.

The Jan 14 article says they pre-positioned engines in the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood areas, “expecting that fires might break out there”. The heading says they “could have put engines in Palisades before the fire broke out”. So, they guessed wrong, I guess?

The city of Los Angeles is very large, and very spread out. Not just LA the city, but all of LA the county, much of inland Orange County, the Inland Empire and the San Bernardino County foothills were all under the same red flag alert. This was an unprecedented and extreme event, and for a very wide area. There were many areas it could have broken out and gotten out of control.

If these extreme events will be occurring more often due to climate change, yes, it’s likely more needs to be spent for fighting fires here, but where is the money going to come from? More taxing of its residents? People are always complaining about that as it is, so that is the dilemma.
JMO

 

[LaborDayRN]

“So, when the winds are calm enough, skilled pilots flying planes aptly named Super Scoopers are skimming off 1,500 gallons of seawater at a time and dumping it with high precision on the fires.

Using seawater to fight fires can sound like a simple solution – the Pacific Ocean has a seemingly endless supply of water. In emergencies like Southern California is facing, it’s often the only quick solution, though the operation can be risky amid ocean swells.”

Planes are dumping ocean water to fight the Los Angeles fires. Here's why using saltwater is typically a last resort

While the consequences of adding seawater to ecosystems are not yet well understood, we can gain insights on what to expect by considering the effects of sea-level rise.

www.pbs.org

I note it says “when the winds are calm enough” (which we know it wasn’t), and the size of the ocean swells is a factor (I don’t know how the swells were, but maybe they were not feasible).

IMO

Good article explaining why they aren't using salt water on the fires.

Reason why firefighters aren't using ocean water to put out LA wildfires despite being on coastline

There are a number of reasons why fresh water is preferable to salt water when it comes to fighting the Palisades Fire and other LA blazes.

www.unilad.com

 

[SouthAussie]

If these extreme events will be occurring more often due to climate change, yes, it’s likely more needs to be spent for fighting fires here, but where is the money going to come from? More taxing of its residents? People are always complaining about that as it is, so that is the dilemma.
JMO

The other dilemma is that we pay our firefighters for a lot of time spent not fighting fires. It is an unavoidable part of keeping firefighters on the ready.

They clean equipment, visit schools to show children the inside of fire trucks, and do other things, while they are not fighting fires. But we must keep them fulltime because they need to financially support themselves and their loved ones, and we need firefighters who are always prepared.

Perhaps LA needs to work hard to bolster its volunteer firefighters. If more people are willing and able. It seems that it already has Crew 3 (trained volunteers) and the Fire Camp program (trained incarcerated volunteers). People who can be called in for big emergencies. IDK

 

[Herat]

Hmmm....

IMO
In such terrain, large population, fire hazard/flammable houses, rampant/not cleared underbrush and climate conditions
the actions concerning firefighting should be more proactive.

The very fact that prisoners (link in post nr 184) had to be employed to fight fires is veeeery telling

Besides,
fire union chief seems to be the right person to express his opinion in these matters, no?

If not him, then who???

Times are a'changing,
climate is changing.
Attitudes should be changing too.

JMO

Inmates are used in large forest wildfires elsewhere in California. This is not a significant issue and does not signal any deficit in the LAFD or other professional firefighting organization.

 

[Dotta]

Nowadays,
firefighting means not only fighting fires
but also
rescue operations during various types of road accidents,
first aid activities,
chemical and ecological rescue,
water rescue and rescue at heights.

In a broad sense,
firefighting is any activity undertaken by specialized fire protection units.
At least in my country.

There are many volunteers to start this profession,
but not all of applicants are fit enough to be a firefighter

 

[SouthAussie]

"Displaced Los Angeles County residents can now seek housing refuge with FEMA’s transitional shelter assistance program, according to FEMA Administrator Robert Fenton, Jr.

The program allows “fire survivors to stay at participating hotels to help fill the housing gap until they can identify a short-or-longer-term housing solution.”

Through this program, FEMA pays for the cost of the hotel room, taxes and non-refundable pet fees, Fenton said.

FEMA has received up to 53,000 registrations for its Individual Assistance Program, with almost $12 million provided, Fenton added."

https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/fire-los-angeles-california-palisades-ventura-eaton-01-15-25-hnk#cm5y43bkp000v356oelw97c3u

 

[Herat]

Nowadays,
firefighting means not only fighting fires
but also
rescue operations during various types of road accidents,
first aid activities,
chemical and ecological rescue,
water rescue and rescue at heights.

In a broad sense,
firefighting is any activity undertaken by specialized fire protection units.
At least in my country.

There are many volunteers to start this profession,
but not all of applicants are fit enough to be a firefighter

A huge amount of firefighter time is spent attending medical 911 calls, of all sorts.

 

[SouthAussie]

A huge amount of firefighter time is spent attending medical 911 calls, of all sorts.

And in complex car accidents ... if the Jaws of Life are needed, or there is a chance of car fire.

They are certainly utiised as much as possible, which limits the down time.

BTW - for those who are interested - I saw in an article yesterday that said the Auto Fire is called that due to the large amount of car dealerships in that area (as opposed to a car fire as was originally thought).

imo

ETA link:

California Wildfire Updates: Palisades, Eaton Fires Fully Contained

The Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles remained active for over three weeks.

www.forbes.com

 

[tarabull]

Jan 15 2025

Fire tornadoes pose a threat in California. A fire lab shows how they work​

https://whnt.com/news/national/ap-us-news/ap-fire-tornadoes-are-a-risk-under-californias-extreme-wildfire-conditions/

 

[JennieM]

41m ago
California governor Gavin Newsom has announced that he has signed an executive order to allow cleanup crews from the US Environmental Protection Agency offices to move into neighborhoods devastated by the Los Angeles fires.

“We appreciate the Biden administration’s support and the fast-acting teams executing this first phase of recovery,” Newsom said in a post on X.

Teams from the EPA and Fema, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will soon begin removing explosive and highly toxic materials. Fema has allocated $100m to the EPA to begin this work.

Debris removal teams will clean up household hazardous waste, including pesticides, propane tanks, and batteries in conventional and electric vehicles.

California fires live: Los Angeles fire crews make progress against deadly wildfires

Los Angeles remains on alert for high winds and fire-prone weather but crews report significant gains in containing Eaton and Palisades fires

www.theguardian.com