Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass removed Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, citing failures in the department’s response to the devastating Palisades wildfire.
Bass appointed former LAFD Chief Deputy Ronnie Villanueva, a 41-year LAFD veteran, as interim chief while the city launches a search for Crowley’s permanent replacement, according to an emailed statement from her office on Friday.
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Bass said Crowley’s dismissal stemmed from key lapses, including sending home 1,000 firefighters on the morning the Palisades fire broke out and refusing to conduct an “after action report.”
“The heroism of our firefighters – during the Palisades fire and every single day – is without question. Bringing new leadership to the Fire Department is what our city needs,” Bass said.
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The Palisades blaze exploded on Jan. 7, driven by hurricane-force gusts, ripping through an area almost twice the size of Manhattan, claiming at least 12 lives and destroying 6,800 structures. A second major blaze, the Eaton Fire, which left 17 dead, was in an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County, outside the city and Bass’s purview.
Economists at the University of California at Los Angeles estimate that total property and capital losses from the fires will be as much as $164 billion.
When contacted for comment from Crowley, LAFD spokesperson Lyndsey Lantz said the department didn’t have an immediate statement.
Topics Louisiana