CBS News has confirmed that as the Palisades Fire started on Jan. 7, only 19 fire engines were pre-deployed to the area.
Los Angeles — Questions are mounting regarding why hundreds of Los Angeles Fire Department personnel were initially held back from racing to the scene of the Palisades Fire when it first broke out last week in L.A.'s Pacific Palisades neighborhood. CBS News has confirmed that as the Palisades Fire started at about 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 7, only 19 fire engines were pre-deployed to the area. But it's unclear how many, if any, were sent to the first neighborhood that caught fire.
Some were not asked to stay past their shifts, and others were assigned to non-fire-related 911 calls, officials confirmed. It would be another eight hours before LAFD sent out an urgent message for all off-duty personnel to call in with their availability. It even requested that CBS News Los Angeles issue the same message on-air. Both Crowley and L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone say the extreme Santa Ana winds overwhelmed them.
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