{"id":2405763,"date":"2025-02-23T15:26:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-23T20:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/los-angeles-mayor-karen-bass-fires-fire-chief-cites-poor-wildfire-response-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-02-23T15:28:52","modified_gmt":"2025-02-23T20:28:52","slug":"los-angeles-mayor-karen-bass-fires-fire-chief-cites-poor-wildfire-response-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/los-angeles-mayor-karen-bass-fires-fire-chief-cites-poor-wildfire-response-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass fires fire chief, cites poor wildfire response &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flos-angeles-mayor-karen-bass-fires-fire-chief-cites-poor-wildfire-response-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2405763&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>los Angeles\u2064 Mayor Karen Bass\u2063 has fired\u200b Fire Chief\u2063 Kristin Crowley, citing poor wildfire response as \u200dthe reason for her dismissal. Bass criticized Crowley for placing firefighters off duty \u200cand failing to conduct\u200c an crucial\u2062 after-action\u200c report related to recent fires. The decision\u2064 comes in the wake of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/just-7-months-before-fires-gavin-newsom-cut-101-million-in-forest-wildfire-funding\/\" title=\"Just 7 Months Before ..., Gavin Newsom Cut 1 Million in Forest Wildfire Funding\">significant budget\u2062 cuts<\/a> to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-massive-explosion-in-downtown-nashville-on-christmas-morning-possible-car-bomb-video\/\" title=\"BREAKING: Massive Explosion in Downtown Nashville on Christmas Morning, Possible Car Bomb (VIDEO)\">fire department<\/a>, which Crowley \u200chad\u200d opposed, arguing\u2064 that the department required more resources and\u2063 personnel. To\u200c replace Crowley \u2062on an interim basis, \u2064Mayor Bass appointed Ronnie \u2063Villanueva, a veteran of the Los Angeles Fire Department. \u200cThe fires in \u200dquestion,referred \u2062to as the palisades and Eaton Fires,caused substantial \u200ddamage,possibly\u2062 making them\u2064 among\u200d the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history. Mayor Bass faced\u200d criticism for \u2062being absent as the fires began, as she\u2062 was attending a delegation in Africa,\u200c while her opponent in the last mayoral election, Rick Caruso, \u200cpublicly\u200d defended Crowley, stating that she had served the city well and had courageously highlighted the negative impact of budget cuts on public safety.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass fires <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/at-least-6-dead-as-tornadoes-devastate-ala-ga\/\" title=\"At least 6 dead as tornadoes devastate Ala., Ga.\">fire chief<\/a>, cites poor wildfire response<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2016266\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass fired Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, citing Crowley&rsquo;s placing firefighters off duty and the chief&rsquo;s alleged refusal to conduct an after-action fire report.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Crowley notably fought against this year&rsquo;s $17.6 million cut to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-los-angeles-earthquake-shakes-espn-studio-forces-host-to-take-things-into-her-own-hands\/\" title=\"Watch: Los Angeles Earthquake Shakes ESPN Studio, Forces Host to Take Things Into Her Own Hands\">fire department&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s budget, warning it needed more staff and resources.<\/p>\n<p>Bass has appointed Ronnie Villanueva, a 41-year LAFD veteran who retired seven months ago as chief deputy of emergency operations, as interim chief.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Acting in the best interests of Los Angeles&rsquo; public safety, and for the operations of the Los Angeles Fire Department, I have removed Kristin Crowley as Fire Chief,&rdquo; said Bass in a statement Friday. &ldquo;We know that 1,000 firefighters that could have been on duty on the morning the fires broke out were instead sent home on Chief Crowley&rsquo;s watch.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Furthermore, a necessary step to an investigation was the President of the Fire Commission telling Chief Crowley to do an after action report on the fires. The Chief refused. These require her removal,&rdquo; Bass said.<\/p>\n<p>The Palisades and Eaton Fires are estimated to have caused hundreds of billions of dollars of direct and indirect damage, making them the costliest natural disasters in American history.<\/p>\n<p>Bass notably was absent when the fires started, as she was in Africa as part of a Biden administration delegation to the new Ghanaian president&rsquo;s inauguration. Bass maintains she was not made aware of the severity of the fire risk before she left for Ghana, while Crowley maintained that major preparations and communications were undertaken.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Developer and former mayoral candidate Rick Caruso, whom Bass narrowly defeated in 2022 and is considered a frontrunner for the 2026 mayoral race, defended Crowley for speaking out against the mayor&rsquo;s actions.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is very disappointing that Mayor Bass has decided to fire Chief Kristin Crowley. Chief Crowley served Los Angeles well and spoke honestly about the severe and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">profoundly ill-conceived budget cuts<\/a> the Bass administration made to the LAFD,&rdquo; said Caruso on X. &ldquo;That courage to speak the truth was brave, and I admire her. Honesty in a high city official should not be a firing offense. The Mayor&rsquo;s decision to ignore the warnings and leave the city was hers alone.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2016266\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2016266\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass dismisses Fire Chief Kristin Crowley over inadequate wildfire response and refusal to file a report<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2405764,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AP24024216205544.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[50930,48133,33278,4133,50931],"class_list":["post-2405763","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-fire-chief","tag-karen-bass","tag-los-angeles-mayor","tag-news","tag-wildfire-response"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/AP24024216205544.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2405763","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2405763"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2405763\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2405767,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2405763\/revisions\/2405767"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2405764"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2405763"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2405763"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2405763"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}