Free Republic

Los Angeles' municipal utility lacks a common safety procedure that may have kept water pumping to fire hydrants during an intentional power shutoff, though President Biden said the outage caused the problem. Republicans, including President-elect Trump, have blamed Democratic officials — at least in part — for the water shortage, which has hampered efforts to fight devastating wildfires in Los Angeles County. Democrats have rebuked these claims, and on Thursday, Biden suggested the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) bore responsibility for shutting off power to pumps that fuel the hydrants. "What I know from talking to the...

Los Angeles' water chief reportedly knew about an empty reservoir and broken fire hydrants months before the deadly wildfires now spreading across the city that have left some communities in ashes. The Daily Mail reports the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) CEO Janisse Quiñones was hired by Mayor Karen Bass on a $750,000 salary in May. Now, LA Fire Department insiders are blaming Quiñones for a nearby reservoir disconnection and broken fire hydrants, the outlet reports, claiming this has led to firefighters running out of water. The Mail reports that Quiñones' past employer was linked to fire...

avin Newsom @GavinNewsom NEW: I am calling for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to local fire hydrants and the reported unavailability of water supplies from the Santa Ynez Reservoir. We need answers to ensure this does not happen again and we have every resource available to fight these catastrophic fires.

The $750,000-a-year LA water czar is responsible for a raft of failures that contributed to the devastating Palisades Fire, fire department insiders told DailyMail.com. On Mayor Karen Bass's orders, the city maxed out its budget to 'attract private-sector talent', hiring Department of Water and Power (LADWP) CEO Janisse Quiñones on a $750,000 salary in May – almost double that of her predecessor. Now, Quiñones is being blamed by LA Fire Department (LAFD) insiders for leaving a nearby reservoir disconnected and fire hydrants broken for months, DailyMail.com can reveal, leading to firefighters running out of water as they battled the devastating...

A large reservoir in Pacific Palisades that is part of the Los Angeles water supply system was out of use when a ferocious wildfire destroyed thousands of homes and other structures nearby. Officials told The Times that the Santa Ynez Reservoir had been closed for repairs to its cover, leaving a 117 million gallon water storage complex empty in the heart of the Palisades. The revelation comes among growing questions about why firefighters ran out of water while battling the blaze. Numerous fire hydrants in higher-elevation streets of the Palisades went dry, leaving firefighters struggling with low water pressure as...

ALTADENA, Calif. — Firefighter Ryan Babroff hurried to a nearby hydrant, hoping to connect his hose and douse the massive flames consuming homes in this mountain community northeast of Los Angeles. But when he pried it open, no water came out. The hydrant was empty. The longtime Cal Fire volunteer said he encountered at least four dry hydrants as he tried to battle the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Wednesday. Fellow firefighters had to drive to neighboring Pasadena to fill their trucks. “How do you fight a fire with no water?” Babroff said. As wildfires tore through greater Los Angeles...

Los Angeles' water boss who makes $750,000 a year couldn't quite explain why fire hydrants have run dry during the disastrous wildfires in a bumbling video. During a press conference Wednesday, Janisse Quiñones, the newly appointed chief executive officer and chief engineer of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, said all water storage tanks in the Pacific Palisades area 'went dry' as flames continue to rage on. At least seven people have been killed and almost 180,000 forced to leave their homes amid the most destructive blaze in the county's history. Quiñones, who previously worked for PG&E prior...

Holy cr*p. LAFD reportedly canceled their annual fire hydrant testing a few weeks ago citing “fiscal challenges.” But they have enough money for an LAFD DEI Bureau and DEI chief. Unbelievable. Quote Max Bonilla @outragedteen_ · 9h Any reason why Los Angeles County failed to test their fire hydrants a week before this fire started? The Notice: TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF ANNUAL HYDRANT TESTING FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024/2025 Tuesday, December 24, 2024 - 08:30:00 In consideration of the Department's current operational and fiscal challenges, the annual hydrant testing scheduled for the beginning of this year will be temporarily suspended. This decision...

Los Angeles fire hydrants are OUT OF WATER because the county REFUSED to refill reservoirs, per Rick Caruso “You can’t fight a fire without water!” The Mayor did ZERO prep despite the advanced warning of winds and fire risk. This is EXACTLY what happened on Maui! ... This is not climate change, this is criminal negligence. ... Yet my notifications are full of leftists screeching about climate change. Ask them why you need a permit to clear highly-flammable brush out of your own backyard. ... The mayor is out of the country. She also cut la fire services by millions...

We have multiple reports of water hydrants in Southern California running out of water as devastating wildfires rip through the Los Angeles area threatening tens of thousands of homes. “The hydrants are down,” said one firefighter battling the flames in the Pacific Palisades per the far-left Los Angeles Times. “Water supply just dropped,” said a second firefighter. “A spokesman for the Department of Water and Power acknowledged reports of diminished water flow from hydrants,” continues the report, “but did not have details on the number of hydrants without water or the scale of the issue.”

Two Chicago men face felony charges after they were caught trying to steal fire hydrants Saturday morning in the Gresham neighborhood, prosecutors said today. Ned D. Carradine, 50, and Russell L. Mack, 51, each face criminal damage to government property and theft of government property charges in connection to the incident, which took place in the 8500 block of South Loomis Boulevard, according to Cook County court records.

ROCKWALL COUNTY - A North Texas homeowner wants you to learn from his family's tragedy. The fire hydrants in his neighborhood are turned off. But he didn't know that until June 24th, the night his house caught fire. "My grandfather died last year. My wife's grandfather died last year. All our pictures were the biggest thing that we lost," said Eric Aderholt. It didn't have to happen. When the fire began, firefighters from around Rockwall County responded quickly. But when they went to hook hose to hydrant, there was no water. "No one ever told us that they were turned...

A stepped-up inspection of D.C. fire hydrants is finding that nearly 10 percent don't work, fire union officials said yesterday. Firefighters doing the testing said they think that more than 900 hydrants across the city are not in working order, posing a significant public safety risk. The D.C. Water and Sewer Authority has greatly underestimated the severity of the problem, union leaders and other D.C. officials said. "Clearly, WASA has a much larger problem than what they realized," said Dan Dugan, president of the D.C. Firefighters Association. The fire department's most recent round of tests began after a fire April...

The $580,000 project compliments a recently-completed sewer and paving project. BAGHDAD, Iraq, Oct. 26, 2005 — Residents of Al Ameen, a southeastern Baghdad neighborhood, will soon reap the benefits of their first-ever water network, courtesy of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team with construction management by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The $580,000 project is 95 percent done, and is scheduled for completion by Nov. 7. “This project will provide potable water and fire hydrants to an area that has never had a water network.” Mike Mitchell, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers “This project will provide potable water and fire...