Concerns Over Lachman Fire Response Emerge
Reports from the Los Angeles Times reveal that at least one official from the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) was aware that firefighters had been instructed to vacate the scene of the Lachman Fire, which occurred just days prior to the Pacific Palisades fire.
Sources briefed on the situation in June indicated to the Times that, on the second day of the Lachman fire, a battalion chief ordered firefighters to leave, despite the visible worries from others present. Strikingly, these details were missing from the department’s after-action report and never disclosed publicly.
The LAFD has not responded to inquiries regarding this issue.
Firefighters were deployed to combat the smaller Lachman Fire, ignited on January 1, approximately six days before the Pacific Palisades fire erupted. They received orders to abandon the site on January 2, with concerns looming that the fire could flare up again, as suggested by text messages retrieved by Spencer Pratt, a former reality TV personality, and the Times.
When approached about these messages, LAFD stated on November 4 that they “do not comment on this matter.”
In a recent social media update, Pratt shared a screenshot of a communication from a firefighter allegedly at the Lachman scene, recounting, “There were some hot spots and it was definitely still smoldering. There was still a large amount of smoldering tree stumps that had to be dug up and watered down…” The message also noted that riot police had to come in to douse the area with water.
Referring to LAFD’s follow-up measures reported in October, it was noted that within thirty minutes after the Palisades Fire ignited on January 7, the 23rd Fire Department received a call from the on-duty captain, mentioning that the Lachman Fire had rekindled.
A senior fire official, not affiliated with LAFD, confirmed to the Times that Battalion Chief Nick Ferrari was informed in June about the order given for firefighters to leave the Lachman scene on January 2. Ferrari did not respond to requests for comment from the Times.
On October 8, authorities arrested 29-year-old Jonathan Linderknecht in relation to the Pacific Palisades fire. Investigators have now concluded that the Palisades Fire is, in fact, a continuation of the Lachman Fire, contrary to early assertions that climate change was the cause of the devastation, as stated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
