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The conflict between the LAFD’s statements and its own records is likely to intensify frustration and anger among Palisades fire victims over contradictory and incomplete information about what was done to protect their community.
At least one LAFD official knew that a battalion chief had directed firefighters to leave the scene of the Lachman fire Jan. 2, even though they complained the ground was still smoking in places and rocks remained hot to the touch, according to a source.
A federal subpoena seeks firefighter texts and other communications about smoke or hot spots in the area of the Jan. 1 Lachman fire, which preceded the Palisades fire.
Bass has directed L.A. Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva to “thoroughly investigate” LAFD missteps in putting out a brush fire that later reignited as the Palisades fire.
Texts between three firefighters and a third party reveal previously undisclosed details about the Los Angeles Fire Department’s handling of a Pacific Palisades burn site.
Freddy Escobar made nearly $540,000 in 2022. He doubled his base salary with overtime payouts, earning a total of more than $424,000 from the city while collecting an additional $115,000 from the union.
The LAFD has not answered questions about exactly which engines were unusable and what was wrong with them. And city officials have slow-walked releasing maintenance records for each of the agency’s 195 engines.
Domingo Albarran Jr. acknowledged to The Times that he underreported the sale price to the DMV because he did not want to pay taxes, and said he misread the odometer and mistakenly plugged in the wrong mileage.
The International Assn. of Fire Fighters late last year suspended Adam Walker from the influential office of secretary of UFLAC and accused him of improperly depositing about $75,000 into his personal accounts, internal IAFF records show.
The toll might not have been as bad if extra engines had been pre-positioned much closer to the most fire-prone areas, former fire chiefs said.
