L.A. Mayor Karen Bass Fires L.A. Fire Chief Kristin Crowley; Caruso Slams Mayor for Passing Buck

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – LA Mayor Karen Bass fired La Fire Station Chief Christine Crowley on Friday, denying permission to investigate, claiming he did not deploy firefighters in advance prior to the Palisade fire. .

A press statement from the mayor's office said:

“I have removed Christine Crowley as fire chief, acting in the best interests of public safety in Los Angeles and for the operation of the Los Angeles Fire Department,” Mayor Bus said. “We know that the 1,000 firefighters that may have been on duty in the morning were sent home on Chief Crawley's watches. Furthermore, the necessary steps to the investigation were the Fire Commission. The chairman of the fire was to tell Secretary Crowley to make a report on the fire later. The chief refused. These require her removal. Our firefighter heroism was the fire of the Palisades. And every day, there is no doubt. Bringing new leadership to the fire department is what our city needs.”

Bass has appointed former Chief Roney Villa Nueva to act as interim director of the LA Fire Department, waiting for a national search for alternative candidates.

Earlier this week, Bass claimed that Chief Crowley did not give sufficient warnings about the risk of a major fire, but Bass himself posted about the risk on social media. The bus was abroad in Ghana at the time of the fire.

A few days after the January 7 fire, Crawley condemned budget cuts in the department's struggle to contain the fire. Bass cut nearly $20 million from the city's fire budget, particularly in operational supply and overtime costs.

The shooting was marked for the first time when civil servants were responsible for the flames, burning nearly 24,000 acres and destroying nearly 7,000 structures. However, Bass himself refused to resign or apologize.