Calls for Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Chief Christine Crowley to retire have intensified following her response to the fires that have devastated communities and killed scores of people.
A group of current and former LAFD battalion chiefs and administrators shared their criticism in a five-page letter obtained by News Nation, urging Crowley to resign. reported on Thursday.
Their letters hold Crowley responsible for many tragic deaths and devastating property losses.
“Secretary Crowley, you have lost the confidence of the Mayor, and more importantly, you have lost the confidence of many of LAFD's chief executives,” the last paragraph of the letter reads. read:
Once this incident is over, LAFD will need to be rebuilt. This includes top-down. You and your current command staff may feel that you are taking on incredible responsibilities and challenges. However, many Chiefs do not believe that you are qualified for the job and that it is in the best interest of the citizens of Los Angeles, the members of LAFD, yourself, and you for you to retire from the position of Fire Chief. You need to know what you feel. your family.
The letter also stated: “No one is saying we could have stopped this fire, but I do know that if you had acted correctly and prepared the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude, the death toll would have been lower. We all have no doubt that the property would have been saved. ”
The group also claimed in the letter that Crowley knew about the LAFD's budget problems before he took office in 2022, but “agreed to” budget cuts, according to News Nation.
Breitbart News reported on January 8 that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) has cut approximately $20 million from the city's fire department budget for this fiscal year.
It is interesting to note that around 100 Los Angeles fire trucks have reportedly been sitting in repair shops for quite some time as fires reduce the area to ashes, according to Breitbart News.
Crowley recently denied that diversity efforts are hurting the department's ability to respond to emergencies, saying, “My first priority is to ensure that we can take care of the communities we are sworn to care for.'' That's what we're capable of doing.” “This is in response to an emergency situation,” Breitbart News reported on Saturday.
