The Los Angeles mayor’s office has released a set of deleted text messages from Mayor Karen Bass and city and county officials during the Palisades Fire. FOX 11 had been requesting the messages for nearly two months, but the mayor’s office initially claimed they had been auto-deleted from her phone. The messages were finally obtained and released on March 27 through a public records request.
The Palisades and Eaton fires broke out on January 7 while Bass was in Ghana. She spent much of the next day traveling over 7,500 miles back to Los Angeles. Her absence sparked criticism, with many questioning why the mayor was halfway around the world during a major emergency.
In an interview with FOX 11, Bass admitted she had made a mistake in traveling and said she regretted not being present. However, she claimed that former L.A. Fire Chief Kristin Crowley had not warned her in advance about the high fire risk, despite weather forecasts predicting dangerous conditions.
While in Ghana, Bass received text messages from various officials, including her staff, city council members, the White House, U.S. senators, and mayors from other cities.
At 11:48 a.m. local time on January 7, Bass’ Deputy Chief of Staff, Celine Cordero, sent the first message about the fire:
“On phone with Chief Crowley now. Two significant fires in city now. She will call you mayor. Hollywood, Pacific Palisades. Potential evacuations, significant resources. 40-mile winds, 100 acres affected in the next 20 minutes.”
Less than an hour later, Cordero followed up:
“Palisades fire is now 200 acres. An evacuation order is being prepared to go out. The Palisades Recreation Center will be used as an evacuation center. Governor will be at command post in 2.5 hours. Crowley said homes will be lost soon. Crowley and I meeting at eco in a minute. 25,000 people expected to be evacuated (in city thus far).”
Around 2 p.m., L.A. County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath texted Bass:
“I understand our county fire department is supporting. And our Office of Emergency Management has been in touch with city staff. Also, do you need additional help support anything you want to put on our radar at this time?”
Bass responded:
“Thanks for asking. I think we are good. I’ll call you in the AM.”
At 8 p.m., Cordero sent an urgent update:
“We will be expanding the evac zone all the way to the Santa Monica city limits and all the way to the top of Mandeville Canyon.”
By 10 p.m., Cordero relayed another LAFD update:
“3,000 acres burned, and civilian injuries reported.”
While returning to Los Angeles, Bass had access to a military phone, but some text messages were redacted, and details of phone conversations remain unknown.
One major issue discussed was the fire hydrants running out of water. The first mention of this problem came on January 8 in the morning, when Bass received a message from LADWP CEO Janisse Quiñones, who apologized for missing the mayor’s call. Quiñones reassured Bass:
“We were able to open refill stations for our system for fire engines, and we sent all our water trucks to Palisades to give them more sources of water.”
“This is great news. Thank you. Landing in four hours,” Bass said.
While the released text messages provide insight into the city’s emergency response, questions remain about why the mayor’s office initially claimed the messages had been deleted and why it took so long to disclose them. Furthermore, the delay in addressing the water supply issue has raised concerns about the city’s fire preparedness.
