Skip to content

Los Angeles fires leave firefighters and water supply overwhelmed

Day two of LA fires: Inferno skies and charred homes

As firefighters battled infernos ravaging the Los Angeles area for a second day, they struggled with water supply to their hoses and hydrants, and firefighters, unaccustomed to fighting multiple blazes at once, were overwhelmed by flames.

Officials detailed on Wednesday morning how the fires had strained the city's water supply, asking residents to conserve water usage and noting that water quality diminished as the system was pushed to its limits.

"We're fighting a wildfire with urban water systems, and that is really challenging," said Janisse Quiñones, head of the city's water and power department.

The water systems in Los Angeles are for urban use, she explained - homes and businesses - not large firefighting efforts, which the city and county do not typically face.

LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone acknowledged that the county and its 24 departments were also not built for this scale of disaster.

"There are not enough firefighters in all of LA County to address four separate fires of this magnitude," he said.

They were prepared for one or two brush fires, but not all four, Chief Marrone noted.

Fire officials have responded to 3,624 calls since the fires broke out; the department average is under 1,500 calls in a 24-hour period. Emergency services were also deployed to another 32 structure fires in the city.

Watch: Moment friends abandon house as Palisades fire closes in

Crews have asked for backup and more resources, but they were overwhelmed by the chaotic nature of the fires and more popping up, said Chief Marrone.

Firefighters also encountered water pressure issues with the Palisades fire. Officials said crews fighting that blaze were not without water, but heavy usage was making it difficult.

"Water availability was impacted at higher elevations, which affected some fire hydrants due to limited replenishment of water tanks in those areas," said LA County Fire spokesman Erik Scott.

Customers have been asked to conserve water as the fire in the Palisades area - now the most destructive in LA's history - pushed the water system to "the extreme" with four times the normal demand for 15 hours straight, said Ms Quiñones.

The US Navy has deployed 10 helicopters with water buckets, while air units with the California and Nevada air National Guards are expected to help fight the Palisades and Eaton fires.

But Ms Quinones noted that longterm changes are needed to update systems for more frequent firefighting.

"We have to look at our system for climate resiliency as a region, and it's going to be more than just [us], it's all the water agencies here."