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Residents of Pacific Palisades are suing the Los Angeles Department of Power and Water after the Palisades fire burnt more than 20,000 acres, destroying thousands of structures and killing at least 8 people.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges mismanagement of the neighborhood’s water, leaving firefighters struggling to contain the blaze.
LA wildfires timeline
Jan. 1:
- Midnight: Firefighters respond to the Lochman Fire northeast of Pacific Palisades.
- 4:46 a.m.: Los Angeles Fire Department contains the fire after it burned 8 acres.
Jan. 7:
- 10:15 a.m.: Pacific Palisades homeowner resident Michel Valentine sees smoke near the site of the Lochman Fire. His wife calls 911 to report the fire, according to the Washington Post.
- 10:33 a.m.: Firefighters report seeing smoke and say they must divert resources from the two other fires, according to radio traffic.
- 10:45 a.m.: Valentine calls 911 again, but gets a busy signal, according to the Washington Post.
- 10:48 a.m.: Firefighters warn in radio traffic that the fire is moving with the wind and has the potential to spread to 10 acres.
- 11 a.m.: The first firefighters arrive at the blaze.
- 11:28 a.m.: The fire grows to 200 acres, according to radio traffic.
- 11:30 to 11:45: Valentine sees the first fire trucks arrive in his own neighborhood.
- 12:20 p.m.: The first evacuation orders go into effect in the Pacific Palisades
- 1:40 p.m.: LA Fire Department reports the blaze is now around 300 acres and growing.
- 7:30 p.m.: Fire grows to nearly 3,000 acres
- By 9:00 p.m.: The fire reaches the center of Pacific Palisades
“The Santa Ynez Reservoir, a 117- million-gallon water storage complex that is part of the Los Angeles water supply system was empty, and had been empty for nearly a year,” the filing states.
Attorneys allege LA DWP did not repair the reservoir cover in a timely manner, and left it unusable as a “cost-saving” measure.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom called for an independent investigation into the empty reservoir, calling the discovery “deeply troubling.”