The Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, has called for an independent inquiry into the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) following a concerning incident where firefighters encountered a lack of water from fire hydrants.
In a letter addressed to the LADWP on Friday, Newsom expressed his dismay at the situation, highlighting the immense pressure that the public infrastructure faced when the firestorms broke out in Los Angeles County on January 7.
Newsom described the revelation as “deeply troubling,” emphasizing that the loss of water supply to hydrants during the wildfires in Los Angeles may have hindered the recovery operations for the affected homes.
“The ongoing reports of the loss of water pressure to some local fire hydrants during the fires and the reported unavailability of water supplies from the Santa Ynez Reservoir are deeply troubling to me and to the community,” he said. “While water supplies from local fire hydrants are not designed to extinguish wildfires over large areas, losing supplies from fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors.”
“I request that LADWP and Los Angeles County officials swiftly prepare a comprehensive review examining their local preparation and response procedures to ensure available water supply for emergencies, and document any causes of the loss of water pressure and unavailability of water supplies.”
A firefighter ties tape on a fire hydrant near the damaged structures burned by the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, U.S., January 10, 2025. (Ringo Chiu/Reuters)
Newsom’s directive came after L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said on Thursday that up to 20% of the city’s hydrants were dry. She said that as of Thursday, firefighters had completely stopped tapping hydrants.
The LADWP was initially pumping aqueducts and groundwater into the system, but demand was so high that there wasn’t enough to refill three 1-million gallon tanks in the hilly Pacific Palisades that help pressurize hydrants.
Many went dry as at least 10,000 homes and buildings were engulfed in flames.
