Los Angeles mayor removes fire chief over handling of wildfires

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By Jessica DiNapoli

(Reuters) -Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said she removed Fire Chief Kristin Crowley for her handling of the wildfires in January that killed more than two dozen people and destroyed or damaged more than 16,000 structures, charring an area bigger than Paris.

Bass said Crowley sent home 1,000 firefighters on the day the fires erupted and that Crowley had refused to do a required after-action report on the blazes.

“These require her removal. The heroism of our firefighters – during the Palisades fire and every single day – is without question. Bringing new leadership to the fire department is what our city needs,” Bass said in a prepared statement.

The mayor and the fire chief have sparred publicly since the fires broke out January 7, with Crowley criticizing the mayor for budget cuts to the department which she said hurt its ability to provide service.

Bass, who also has faced criticism for traveling when the fires began, said on Friday at a press conference that she did not cut the fire department’s budget.

The mayor named Ronnie Villanueva the city’s interim fire chief, and said they are starting a new search for a permanent leader for the department. Villanueva recently retired from the fire department after 41 years, most recently serving as chief deputy of emergency operations.

Bass said the president of the city’s fire commission told Crowley to complete an after-action report as part of an investigation of the fires, and that it is required by the city. Crowley was asked to do the report this week, Bass said.

“She refused,” Bass said, adding that during a brief meeting on Friday she had removed Crowley from her job. Bass said she did not know Crowley’s justification for not doing the report, or for sending home 1,000 firefighters the first day of the blaze.

Bass said Los Angeles is no longer in a state of emergency. She did not want to take any action such as removing Crowley while the city was fighting the fires, or during the damaging rains that came after.

Los Angeles is now recovering from the blazes that devastated homes and businesses, with workers removing toxic debris as part of the clean-up.

Bass said the clean-up has moved forward “way ahead of time.”

“The city is not in upheaval,” the mayor said.

(Reporting by Brendan O’Brien in Chicago; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Bill Berkrot)