There is a lot of criticism in the media concerning the response to the catastrophic fires in LA County in mid-January, but is it all justified? Was it the fire department’s response or the result of politicians making bad decisions?
First there was the water supply. A retired Orange County fire chief correctly pointed out that water distribution systems are designed to supply enough water for homes and businesses plus one large-scale structure fire for a limited time. In this case scores of fire engines and water tenders were trying to draw water simultaneously and overtaxed the system.
Secondly, water supply pumps are generally electrically powered. When the utilities shut off power, the pumps can’t provide water to the system unless they have reliable, well-maintained fossil-fuel powered generators. And as the fire progresses, privately owned water system piping is damaged and large amounts of water are released only to flow down the street as the piping fails.
To design/build a system capable of reliably supplying that much water in worst-case situations would cost hundreds of millions more than the current systems.
But an empty reservoir, reported by several media sources, during high fire danger periods is inexcusable. Anyone, including the providers of an adequate water supply and politicians, who have lived for more than a year in Southern California knows that December through January produces strong winds, abundant dry vegetation, red flag fire warnings, and large fires.
Air resources weren’t used early in the fire simply because it was too windy to fly safely, and any retardant or water they dropped would have literally been blown away.
Next are building codes that do not consider that hurricane force winds will push fires out of the wildland and through adjacent developed communities within minutes. Add to that state mandated changes that substantially reduced the distance between buildings and requirements to increase housing density to solve the “housing crisis,” and you have a recipe for a deadly conflagration.
When local politicians, like those in the city of Los Angeles, reduce fire department budgets so they can support “nonemergency services,” the result is fewer resources to respond. The LA city fire chief confirmed that 100-plus fire apparatus were out of service due to budget cuts when these fires erupted.
For decades there have been substantial fires in LA County, which have destroyed thousands of structures; many have occurred along the coastal communities of Malibu and Pacific Palisades and in the canyons of LA County and most of Southern California. So these fires weren’t as “unique” as politicians want you to believe.
So for politicians, who are responsible for public safety above all else, to simply shrug their collective shoulders, point fingers at other agencies, and seemingly say “what could we do” in the wake of one of these fires even though every fire chief in the state keeps warning them of the hazards, simply proves they are unfit for elective office.
Even though some homes were spared in the current fires, the inevitable mud flows that will come with winter rain may destroy them too, and it will take months to restore utilities and remove the rubble.
It’s going to take at least a decade to rebuild these communities, and many people may never recover from their losses. Then vegetation will return, the wind will blow, and more large fires will occur. And if property owners can afford to rebuild, bureaucratic red tape will impede their efforts.
Despite reduced budgets and the lack of water, responding firefighters and law enforcement people risked their lives to assist in evacuations; however, the wind and fire still claimed many lives and destroyed 10,000-plus homes and businesses.
It doesn’t matter what your economic status is, when you lose your home, you are homeless and if you lose your business, you can’t provide services or jobs. When will politicians start focusing on protecting the public from these predictable catastrophic fires and start listening to fire officials’ concerns? If they don’t, there will be more fatalities and vacant lots. m
Ron Fink writes to the Sun from Lompoc. Send a letter for publication to letters@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 23 – Feb 2, 2025.