8TH DISTRICT REPORT | FREDDY ESCOBAR

IN THE AFTERMATH of the devastating Palisades Fire, which resulted in 12 fatalities and 7,000 destroyed structures, lots of fingers are being pointed.

But for decades, the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City has sounded the alarm about how severely understaffed and under-resourced the Los Angeles Fire Department has been. Here are some facts:

In 1960, L.A.’s population was 2.5 million served by 112 fire stations. Today, it’s population is 3.9 million with 106 fire stations. That’s 1.4 million more people and six fewer fire stations.

In 1969, the LAFD responded to 101,000 emergency incidents. In 2023, we responded to 505,000 emergency incidents. That’s five times the number of calls with fewer fire stations and only slightly more firefighters.

The national average staffing level in densely populated cities is 1.5 to 1.8 firefighters per 1,000 residents. The LAFD is at 0.9 firefighters per 1,000 residents, approximately half of the national average.

Shortly after the Palisades Fire broke out, LAFD Fire Chief Kristin Crowley told the truth about our neglected fire department. But Mayor Karen Bass made her a scapegoat and terminated her. In our opinion, Chief Crowley was fired for telling the truth.

UFLAC is not going to stand down on this matter.

In the coming months, the brothers and sisters of UFLAC, Local 112, will be rolling out our plan for a Fire Facilities Bond that will build new stations and provide the equipment, rigs, and staffing necessary to serve the nation’s second largest city. We’ll take our case directly to the public and we are ready for the fight.

In closing, I want to thank all the brothers and sisters from CPF affiliates who came to aid us during this massive fire. Our members appreciated the assistance and will be forever grateful to everyone who stepped up.