The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) was sued after claims that they didn’t manage water supplies properly during the Palisades Fire, which has killed at least 8 people and destroyed many homes.
The lawsuit, filed on Monday, says that LADWP should have made sure a nearby water reservoir was filled. But, when the fire started last Tuesday, the reservoir was empty. The lawsuit says that because of this, the fire spread quickly, making things worse for the families who lost their homes. These families went from owning homes to losing everything in just a few hours.
The fire destroyed the West Los Angeles area of Pacific Palisades. Governor Gavin Newsom even asked for an investigation into how the LADWP managed water during the fire.
LADWP’s CEO, Janisse Quinones, explained that the fire department had to use water from lower areas, making it harder to refill the water tanks in the higher areas. They said they filled all available water tanks before the fire worsened. But, within one day of the fire starting, three water tanks ran out of water.
