Los Angeles Fire Department admits initial Palisades fire report edited to protect leadership

The caput of the Los Angeles City Fire Department (LAFD) revealed this week that the after-action investigation of the devastating Palisades Fire was edited respective times to support leadership, a study said. 

The Palisades Fire, which ignited successful January 2025, was the 3rd astir destructive successful California’s history, Cal Fire has said. 

LAFD Chief Jaime Moore made the admittance astir the study during an LA Fire Commission gathering connected Tuesday, according to KNBC.

"It is present wide that aggregate drafts were edited to soften connection and trim explicit disapproval of the department leadership successful that last report," Moore was quoted by the presumption arsenic saying. "This editing occurred anterior to my assignment arsenic Fire Chief. And I tin guarantee you that thing of this benignant volition hap ever again portion I americium Fire Chief." 

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LAFD Fire Chief Jaime Moore speaks during a Hollywood Walk of Fame Award of Excellence Star successful Los Angeles, Calif., connected Dec. 12, 2025. At right, a firefighter battles the Palisades Fire arsenic it burned during a windstorm connected the westbound broadside of Los Angeles connected Jan. 7. 2025. (Mario Anzuoni/Ringo Chiu/Reuters)

In November, KNBC reported that an anonymous missive was sent to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmembers Marqueece Harris-Dawson and Traci Park claiming that the LAFD’s after-action study connected the Palisades Fire wasn’t thorough due to the fact that its mentation was supervised by immoderate of the aforesaid occurrence officials who made decisions during the blaze.

Moore besides said that the department’s handling of the Lachman Fire — a tiny New Year’s Day 2025 brushwood occurrence that ignited successful the Pacific Palisades, yet starring to the Palisades Fire — wasn't bully enough, KNBC added. 

"At the time, occurrence companies were instructed to prime up hose. The section genuinely believed the occurrence was afloat extinguished. That was based connected the information, condition and procedures successful spot astatine that moment," Moore reportedly said. 

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A drone representation shows harm from the Palisades Fire successful the Pacific Palisades vicinity of Los Angeles connected Jan. 28, 2025. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Firefighters moving the tract of the Lachman Fire were ordered to permission the archetypal pain country contempt histrion stumps determination being blistery to the touch, according to a reappraisal of firefighter substance messages by the Los Angeles Times past October.

The newspaper, citing the texts, reported that the firefighters’ battalion main told them to battalion up their hoses and depart the country connected Jan. 2, 1 time aft the Lachman Fire was declared contained. Then connected Jan. 7, dense winds reignited smoldering roots from the aforesaid area, sparking the Palisades Fire, which burned immoderate 7,000 structures and killed 12 people. 

Firefighters ticker the flames from the Palisades Fire burning a location during a almighty windstorm connected Jan. 8, 2025 successful the Pacific Palisades vicinity of Los Angeles, Calif.  (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)

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"As a result, we’ve already changed our mop-up procedures, and we formally incorporated the usage of the drone exertion to heighten station suppression verification, situational awareness, and detection of residual heat," Moore besides said Tuesday, according to WNBC.