Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley is under mounting pressure to step down amid criticisms of her handling of the recent wildfires, including disapproval from her own ranks within the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD).
According to The Post Millennial, a five-page letter penned by both active and retired LAFD firefighters has called for Crowley's resignation. The letter pointedly criticizes her leadership, attributing the department's inadequate response to the wildfires to her lack of preparation. The firefighters argue that better preparation could have mitigated the extent of fatalities and property damage.
"Your job as Fire Chief was to prepare us, the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude and you have failed," the firefighters stated in the letter. They further asserted, "If you had done things right and prepared the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude, fatalities would have been reduced, and property would have been saved."
The letter also suggested that Crowley's resignation would be in the best interest of Los Angeles citizens. Crowley, who made history in 2022 as the first female and openly gay fire chief to lead the department, has been under scrutiny for ineffective leadership. Since her appointment, 125 commanders have retired, leading to leadership voids in firehouses across the city. Crowley's focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives has also been a point of contention.
The firefighters reiterated in their letter, "While no one is saying that this fire could have been stopped, there is no doubt among all of us that if you had done things right and prepared the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude, fatalities would have been reduced, and property would have been saved.
Crowley has defended herself by claiming that the city has failed her department by not providing adequate funding. This defense comes in the wake of revelations that Mayor Karen Bass has slashed the fire departments budget by over $17 million in the citys latest budget. In response to calls for her own resignation, Bass has announced an external investigation into the citys response to the wildfires, stating that internally we absolutely are looking back at what happened.
"We need to look back at everything that happened, Bass told reporters, according to the New York Post. But to me, over the last week, the most important thing was to get past the fires to make sure that on Monday and Tuesday, were not facing a danger again.
In a bid to rebuild, Bass has appointed former Los Angeles Police Commission President Steve Soboroff as the city's "chief recovery officer." Soboroff's role will involve coordinating recovery efforts, restoring affected communities, and ensuring that resources are effectively allocated for recovery.
Our absolute priority is to return Angelenos to their homes and rebuild. Steve knows our communities, he knows how to activate City Hall, he knows how to engage the public, business, non-profit and philanthropic resources needed for this massive effort, Bass said.
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