Firefighters Withdraw from Rekindled Palisades Blaze: Latest Report

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In a tragic turn of events, text messages have surfaced revealing that firefighters had expressed concerns about leaving a smoldering brush fire unattended in the Pacific Palisades. Despite their warnings, they were instructed by their battalion chief to withdraw, a decision that may have contributed to a subsequent deadly fire that claimed 12 lives.

The Los Angeles Times has obtained text messages indicating that firefighters cautioned their battalion chief about the lingering heat and smoldering conditions at the site of the Lachman Fire. This fire, which ignited on New Year’s Day, had been declared contained but evidently left areas that were still hot to the touch.

Despite these warnings, the battalion chief directed the firefighters to pack up and leave the scene on January 2, just a day after the 8-acre fire was deemed contained. This decision was made instead of ensuring that no hidden embers remained that could potentially reignite the blaze, as reported by the Times.

Video evidence suggests that the smoldering remnants of the initial fire may have persisted for several days before evolving into the destructive Palisades Fire. Prosecutors have identified an Uber driver as the individual who started the initial fire.

The Palisades Fire, reignited by strong winds on January 7, resulted in significant devastation, claiming 12 lives and causing widespread damage across the Pacific Palisades region.

Officials have said that they thought the Lachman Fire had been extinguished.

Plenty of rank-and-file firefighters, however, disagreed with that assessment and made their displeasure known in the texts reviewed by the Times.

“In one text message, a firefighter who was at the scene on Jan. 2 wrote that the battalion chief had been told it was a ‘bad idea’ to leave the burn scar unprotected because of the visible signs of smoldering terrain,” the Times reports. “’And the rest is history,’” the firefighter wrote in recent weeks.”

Spencer Pratt, who lost his home in the fire, posted some of the text messages from current firefighters weeks ago. Pratt and Gabriel Mann, who directed the documentary “Hot Shots,” have been communicating with active Los Angeles Fire Department personnel about the response.

An anonymous firefighter who was on scene confirmed the account, according to Mann and Pratt.

“When he was on scene, he saw multiple smoldering stumps, red hot coals, stuff that would not be considered mopped up properly for a wildfire this size,” Pratt said. “He communicated this to his battalion chief, and he was even trying to dump water that was still left in the uncharged hoses, just to try to put this stuff out, and he was told to pick up the hoses and get out.”

In a new text shared with , the firefighter placed ultimate responsibility on the state.

“The city could have done better. However, we’re super busy and understaffed,” the firefighter wrote. “The state should have been there to assume command. This highlights the lack of unified command and proves that the state and local agencies have huge gaps in managing the urban interface brush that led to the Palisades fire.”

The Los Angeles Fire Department had previously maintained it completely extinguished the earlier fire. The department did not respond to requests for comment about the text messages.

The revelations come after newly obtained video showed the fire smoldering on Jan. 2, with hikers calling 911 to report smoke rising from the ground. No crews were dispatched to investigate those calls.

Mayor Bass requests investigation into Lachman fire response failures

Mayor Karen Bass on Friday sent a letter to LAFD Interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva requesting a thorough investigation into the Lachman fire response.

“This week’s report about the Lachman Fire is tremendously alarming, and underscores the reforms and new leadership we have been bringing to the Los Angeles Fire Department since January,” Bass wrote. “A full understanding of the Lachman Fire response is essential to an accurate accounting of what occurred during the January wildfires.”

Bass said the investigation will guide ongoing reforms, including enhancing pre-deployment protocols, strengthening interagency coordination, upgrading communications technology and expanding training at all staff levels.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office did not respond to requests for comment.

Roger Behle, an attorney representing Palisades fire victims, has said the state bears ultimate responsibility for failing to monitor the fire on state land, especially with a red flag high wind warning in effect.

A spokesperson for Newsom’s office previously called lawsuits against the state “baseless,” saying the state was not responsible for responding to or monitoring the fire and that it did not begin on state land.

However, both the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and a legal land survey conducted by Behle’s team indicate the fire did originate on state property.