California water supply crucial for LA wildfire response allowed to run dry months before infernos: lawsuit
Over a dozen victims of the Pacific Palisades Fire are suing a Los Angeles public utility company for "failures" they say contributed to the fire's devastation.
The lawsuit, filed last week on behalf of community residents and a pizzeria owner, accused the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power of being unprepared for the Palisades Fire and allowing a critical water supply to remain dry before the inferno that lawyers said was "the worst natural disaster in the history of the City of Los Angeles," according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
"The water supply system servicing Pacific Palisades failed miserably, leaving residents and firefighters with little to no water to fight the blaze," Roger Behle, an attorney representing one of the Palisades Fire survivors and whose own family lost their home to wildfire in 2020, said in a statement.
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"The Santa Ynez Reservoir, a 117-million-gallon water storage complex that is part of the Los Angeles water supply system was empty, and had been empty for nearly a year," Behle continued.
The suit alleges that the Santa Ynez Reservoir was taken out of commission in February 2024 by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and drained over "concerns about water quality" after a tear in the floating cover allowed debris, bird droppings and other objects to enter the water supply.
By the time the Palisades Fire broke out, the required repair work had not been completed, and the reservoir remained empty, which left fire crews with "little to no water" to fight the flames, the lawsuit continues.
"LADWP made the conscious decision not to timely repair the Santa Ynez Reservoir cover, leaving the reservoir drained and unusable, all as a ‘cost-saving’ measure," attorneys argue.
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The public purpose for draining the reservoir and leaving it empty was "to seek contractor bids rather than using in-house personnel" to repair the reservoir, according to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the lawsuit states.
"The degree of damage that resulted from the Palisades Fire far outweighed any benefit that could have been realized by outsourcing and delaying repairs to the Santa Ynez Reservoir," attorneys representing the fire survivors argue.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered an independent investigation of the LADWP on Jan. 10 regarding the loss of water pressure and deliberate shut down of the reservoir, calling it "deeply troubling," according to court records.
Newsom added that the loss of water pressure "likely impaired" the ability of firefighters to protect homes and evacuation zones in the Pacific Palisades.
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Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Erik Scott said there were "challenges with water pressure while battling the Pacific Palisades fire" and water "pressure wasn’t quite what we needed," documents say.
Attorneys go on to argue that despite "dire warnings" by the National Weather Service of "critical fire weather" with the potential for "rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior," the LADWP was unprepared for the Palisades Fire.
"LADWP had a duty to properly construct, inspect, maintain and operate its water supply system. The LADWP violated these duties," the lawsuit alleges.
The residents of the Pacific Palisades are suing the public utility company for property damage and personal injuries suffered.
"The Palisades Fire has been a traumatic event for its victims, who through no fault of their own, went from homeowners to homeless in a matter of hours," lawyers wrote, adding that the fire has killed at least eight people, caused injuries to many civilians and firefighters and destroyed at least 5,300 homes and businesses in the Pacific Palisades, Malibu and Topanga Canyon.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and Newsom's office did not immediately respond for comment.