Joe Biden suggested that the lack of water in Los Angeles fire hydrants was not due to a water shortage but rather because the power to water pumps had been cut off as a result of the devastating wildfires.
The destructive fires in the county have resulted in the tragic loss of six lives as of Thursday. Additionally, over 10,000 structures have been destroyed, approximately 400,000 customers across the state were left without power, and more than 180,000 individuals have been evacuated from their homes.
The significant breakdowns in the city’s systems have raised questions about how the situation escalated to this point, prompting calls for the resignation of Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom.
With many furious people saying that water was unavailable to fire crews, Biden explained that the problems are self-inflicted to avoid further fanning the flames.
‘What I know from talking to the governor, there are concerns out there that there’s also been a water shortage,’ he said in a press briefing Thursday.
‘The fact is the utilities, understandably, shut off power because they are worried the lines that carried energy were going to be blown down and spark additional fires.
‘When it did that, it cut off the ability to generate pumping the water, that’s what caused the lack of water in these hydrants.’
In an attempt to rectify the situation, Biden said Cal Fire and other state officials are bringing in generators.
He added that Cal Fire, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, is bringing in generators to help with the shortage of water coming out of the hydrants.
Donald Trump has blamed the fires on Newsom for being unprepared for the devastating wildfires that have cropped up all around Los Angeles causing immeasurable damage.
‘Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way.’
Newsom’s press office slammed Trump for claiming he could demand water flow into California at any time and isn’t doing so on purpose.
‘There is no such document as the water restoration declaration – that is pure fiction,’ a spokesperson for Newsom wrote.
‘The Governor is focused on protecting people, not playing politics, and making sure firefighters have all the resources they need.’
Bass, meanwhile, has faced heavy criticism for being in Ghana to attend the West African country’s presidential inauguration on Tuesday, after meteorologists warned that a ‘recipe for fire’ was on track to strike LA.
She has shrugged off calls for her to resign over her response to devastating wildfires.
Bass tried to cut the LA Fire Department’s budget by some $23million in 2024 but settled for $17.6 million in cuts.
Speaking at a press conference Thursday, she said: ‘My number one focus and the focus of all of us here is we have to protect lives, save lives and save homes.
‘Rest assured, when that is done, when we are safe, when lives have been saved, we will absolutely do an evaluation to look at what worked, what didn’t work, and to correct or hold accountable any body, department, individual etc.
Scores of A-listers have taken to their social media accounts to hit out at Bass and the city over the response to the fires.
Sarah Michelle Geller said on her Instagram: ‘City of LA you want everyone to evacuate yet you have complete gridlock and not one traffic cop on the roads helping.’
Actress Sara Foster added: ‘We pay the highest taxes in California. Our fire hydrants were empty.
‘Our vegetation was overgrown, brush not cleared. Our reservoirs were emptied by our governor because tribal leaders wanted to save fish.
Our fire department budget was cut by our mayor. But thank god drug addicts are getting their drug kits. RESIGN. Your far left policies have ruined our state. And also our party.’
Former Dancing with the Stars professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy also expressed his dissatisfaction on social media.
‘5th largest economy on the planet. Firefighters didn’t have enough water pressure to do their job?! Are you joking me?! The taxes we pay for 3rd world infrastructure is unbelievable?! Come on.
Actor James Woods also blasted the mayor, blaming her and California Governor Gavin Newsom for the fire.
‘This fire is not from ‘climate change,’ you ignorant a**hole. It’s because liberal idiots like you elect liberal idiots like Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass.
‘One doesn’t understand the first thing about fire management and the other can’t fill the water reservoirs’, he wrote.
The death toll of the historic infernos have now reached six, as heroic firefighters still battle hellish conditions on the front lines of at least five different fires.
Officials have warned that they expect those figures to climb as they continue to grapple with the infernos.
A new fire prompted evacuations Thursday in and around Los Angeles even as firefighters aided by calmer winds saw the first signs of successfully beating back the region’s deadly and devastating wildfires, while the enormity of the devastation started to emerge.
The Kenneth Fire started in the late afternoon in the San Fernando Valley near the West Hills neighborhood and close to Ventura County. The evacuation order covered parts of Ventura and Los Angeles counties.
AccuWeather, a private company that provides data on weather and its impact, on Thursday increased its estimate of the damage and economic loss to $135-$150 billion.
Previously, the company had estimated the damage could reach $57 billion.
Already, 600 service members have arrived from the Cal Guard along with equipment to help local authorities. They brought 10 rotary wing aircrafts and two C-130 planes to help fight the fires.
Roughly 400,000 customers statewide were without power as of Thursday, according to the tracker PowerOutage.us.
Nearly 180,000 residents are under evacuation orders, per officials.
The fires have ripped areas apart, turning the picturesque neighborhoods into smoldering ash-laden sites.
Pushed on by powerful winds, the two major fires have wiped out around 10,000 structures and scorched famous landmarks that stood in its path.
The homes of Anthony Hopkins, John Goodman and Miles Teller are among those destroyed, while dozens of other stars now face an anxious wait alongside their neighbors to learn if anything could be saved.
Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes, Paris Hilton, James Woods, Billy Crystal and his wife Janice all claimed to have seen their homes go up in smoke in the Palisades Fire.
LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley believes the fire started accidentally in a back garden around 10am Tuesday morning.
She told reporters the fire is ‘spreading at a speed beyond anything we’ve seen… it’s now unlike anything we have seen in our lifetime.’
20 people have also been arrested on suspicion of raiding homes in parts of Southern California during the blazes.
Sheriff of Los Angeles County Robert Luna mentioned in a Wednesday press conference that two people had been arrested for looting.
He said: ‘It’s always sad when I have to say this, but part of our responsibility is to make sure no one loots or steals from our residents or our community members who are already being impacted.
‘And I’m sad to report we made two arrests this morning for looting. So if you are thinking about coming into any of these areas to steal from our residents, I’m going to tell you something: You’re going to be caught, you’re going to be arrested and you’re going to be prosecuted.’
On Thursday, Kathryn Barger, chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, said the sheriff’s department had now arrested 20 people for looting or burglary.
The rise in cases has caused a number of residents of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood to hire a private security firm to watch their homes.
More than 1,500 California firefighters are tasked with quelling the wind-whipped wildfires, while the California National Guard prepares to deploy more military personnel to assist.
