Dozens of fire trucks and ambulances are gathering dust at a maintenance yard in Lincoln Heights, Los Angeles, following an $18 million budget cut to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD). The lack of mechanics to repair the vehicles has left them out of service, raising concerns about the department's readiness to respond to emergencies. City Councilmember Traci Park expressed frustration over the situation, particularly in light of the recent Palisades Fire, the largest in the city's history.
Dozens of service emergency vehicles are sitting unused at a maintenance yard in Lincoln Heights, following the $18 million budget cut to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
In December, Newschopper4 spotted dozens of fire trucks and ambulances in the lot. It is unclear how long the fire trucks and ambulances have been sitting for repair."Unfortunately, there are dozens of million-dollar fire rigs sitting in a boneyard out of service because there is a lack of mechanics to fix them," said City Councilmember Traci Park.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said last month that the budget cuts did not have an impact on the LAFD’s response to the wildfires. In a memo back in December, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley warned weeks before the Palisades Fire that the budget reduction, approved by Mayor Karen Bass last year, would impact the department’s ability to prepare and respond to large-scale emergencies.
“So, 17 million dollar cut did not allow us to do what we needed to do,” Crowley said. “And where that impacted us specifically for Palisades was our ability to move into reserve apparatus.” Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
On Jan. 14 on X, the United Firefighters of Los Angeles wrote that “firefighters have been speaking about staffing issues and a lack of investment in the LAFD for years.”
BUDGET CUTS LAFD FIRE DEPARTMENT EMERGENCIES STAFFING ISSUES
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