Los Angeles [California], March 2: More than 1,000 fire hydrants across Los Angeles needed repair prior to the devastating wildfires in January, reported the Los Angeles Times Saturday.
But the Los Angeles Fire Department did not inform the city's Department of Water and Power (LADWP) until mid-February despite being aware of the issues months before, said the report, citing city records and officials.
The Los Angeles Fire Department discovered the damage to the hydrants during inspections in the months prior to the Jan. 7 Palisades fire.
In January, Los Angeles County, the most populated county in the United States, experienced the most catastrophic wildfires in its history. The two deadly major wildfires, the Palisades and Eaton fires, killed at least 28 people and destroyed over 16,000 structures.
While firefighters struggled with low water pressure during the blaze, it's unclear whether the damaged hydrants played a role, said the report.
Firefighters reported being unable to access water from some hydrants as they defended structures in Pacific Palisades, battling the Palisades Fire.
LADWP, the largest municipal utility in the country, relies on the Los Angeles Fire Department to conduct annual inspections of the city's roughly 66,000 fire hydrants. In August, it had received an annual report from the Los Angeles Fire Department documenting the status of the city's hydrants, but none were flagged as requiring repairs, Janisse Quinones, chief executive of the LADWP, was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
In January, California Governor Gavin Newsom called for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to local fire hydrants during Southern California wildfires. "We need answers to ensure this does not happen again," the governor wrote on the social platform X.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
