LA Mayor Karen Bass denies editing Palisades Fire after action report

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is vehemently denying reporting by the Los Angeles Times that she ordered the LAFD’s Palisades Fire after-action report to be softened at her request. Photo credit Karen Bass Press conference ABC image

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is vehemently denying reporting by the Los Angeles Times that she ordered the LAFD’s Palisades Fire after-action report to be softened at her request. The newspaper first uncovered that the report, released in October, had been edited to downplay criticism of department failures. 

Residents who lost homes and businesses have condemned the LAFD’s lack of pre-deployment of fire crews ahead of repeatedly forecast high-risk wind conditions, as well as the department’s performance in battling the catastrophic blaze that killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6,800 structures throughout Pacific Palisades, Topanga, Malibu, and unincorporated Los Angeles County. The after-action report was commissioned to learn what steps the department could improve upon and what lessons could be learned in fighting future wildfires. 

In a series of scathing reports faulting the LAFD’s handling of the fire and subsequently watering down the final draft of the after-action report, the Times latest allegation is that Bass herself ordered the altering of the report to lessen the city’s exposure to legal liabilities due to oversights or negligence.

Two anonymous sources who provided the accusations against Bass said the mayor is not telling the truth about her involvement in the editing of the report. They also claimed that although she was involved, they could not pinpoint whether the instructions to water down the report were line-by-line edits or a general directive. Both sources told the newspaper they would testify under oath should the matter proceed to court.

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