Two years ago, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley highlighted the urgent need for two fully equipped crews dedicated to brush clearing and maintaining wildfire lines. The current part-time team, mostly composed of young volunteers, was insufficient.
Despite Chief Crowley’s request for additional funding, the City Council only approved a small portion of it. As a result, the hiring process was delayed due to bureaucratic hurdles within the Los Angeles administration.
In light of recent devastating wildfires, some residents have taken legal action against the government for perceived failures that contributed to the fires’ spread. However, the main recourse for residents seems to be through electing new city officials, as stated by a local attorney representing homeowners seeking compensation after losing their properties in the fires.
“It’s a political disaster and may result in Bass being recalled,” Neama Rahmani, a Los Angeles-based attorney who is representing multiple local clients in lawsuits in the aftermath of the destruction, said about Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “But there is nothing that can be done legally.”
The fire department did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
While city officials may be safe from legal repercussions, separate lawsuits against insurance companies and those who may have been responsible for igniting the wildfires remain on the table, Rahmani said.
“The only real viable case is against Edison,” he told Fox News Digital.
A building burns on Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 8, 2025. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)
Southern California Edison, a utility company, is facing several lawsuits alleging that its equipment helped start the Eaton Fire, which has scorched northern parts of Los Angeles County, including Altadena. Rahmani’s firm is involved in the litigation against the utility and is also representing victims with insurance claims and seeking aid from government programs pro bono, he said.
The Palisades Fire, which tore through the Pacific Palisades community, is being described as the most destructive wildfire in the history of Los Angeles.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
