LA fire chief said dept. was lacking resources months before LA wildfires

LA fire chief said department was lacking resources months before LA wildfires

Months before the January LA wildfires broke out, former LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley sounded the alarm about her department's lack of resources. That conversation is now part of a new podcast launched today by Metro whistleblower Gina Osborne called Making Maverick Moves. Osborne's conversation with Crowley took place in November.

LOS ANGELES - Months before the January wildfires broke out, former LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley sounded the alarm about the department's lack of resources.

That conversation is now part of a new podcast launched Monday by Metro whistleblower Gina Osborne called Making Maverick Moves.

Osborne is the former chief safety officer at Metro who was fired after speaking about what she says she uncovered at LA metro.

Osborne's conversation with Crowley took place in November. She told FOX 11 that from her short time interviewing Crowley, she seemed like a good leader who was rallying behind her troops.

"I think it was very premature. And just based on my conversations with her, she was sounding the alarms prior to, I mean, the entire time that she was the chief, that she didn't have the resources that she needed, that she was underfunded and that she was understaffed. So I really don't see how it's justified," Osborne said to FOX 11.

Clip from podcast

"When it comes to my position as the chief of advocating and fighting for the safety and well-being of our firefighters, that's my job to stand up and to say the fire department can no longer operate this way. We're understaffed, under-resourced and underfunded, and our Los Angeles City Fire Department is literally at a crossroads. So the maverick move is for me to stand up and say, the fire department can no longer do this," Crowley said in the podcast.

Crowley fired

What we know:

Mayor Karen Bass fired Crowley as LA fire chief on Friday, Feb. 21. During a press conference, Bass said Crowley was asked by the fire commissioner to complete an after-action report on the recent LA wildfires. Crowley allegedly refused to do the report, so Bass said she terminated her.

What we don't know:

It's unclear why Crowley refused to complete an after-action report.

Kristin Crowley's response

Crowley issued a statement on Saturday, for the first time since her removal, calling her time as Chief "an absolute honor." The full statement read:

"As a humble public servant for over the past 30 years, 25 of those with the LAFD, it has been an absolute honor to represent and lead the men and women of one of the greatest fire departments in the world. As the Fire Chief, I based my actions and decisions on taking care of our firefighters so that they could take care of our communities. Serving others before self, having the courage and integrity to do what is right, and leading with compassion, love and respect have guided me throughout my career. I am extremely proud of the work, sacrifice and dedication of our LAFD members, both sworn and civilian."

Turmoil after the LA wildfires

Dig deeper:

Mayor Bass was heavily criticized for being out of the country when the Palisades and Eaton fires broke out on Jan. 7. She was in Ghana as part of a four-member U.S. delegation sent by President Joe Biden to attend the inauguration of John Dramani Mahama as that nation's president.

Bass returned to Los Angeles the day after the fires erupted. Many criticized her for the lack of response during the wildfires and for leaving the country during LA's time of need.

Mayor Bass says she wasn't given warning on weather prior to Ghana trip

"I felt absolutely terrible not being here for my city," LA Mayor Karen Bass told FOX 11's Elex Michaelson during a sit-down interview addressing her trip to Ghana as the wildfires broke out. She said she wasn't given any early warnings about the weather prior to her leaving the country.

In her first sit-down TV interview since the fires erupted, Bass told FOX 11 that Fire Chief Kristin Crowley did not call to warn her in advance of the trip and didn't do the "normal preparations" for this kind of wind event. Bass told FOX 11 that no advance warnings were given to her prior to leaving.

Crowley discusses budget cuts during fires

On January 10, in an interview with FOX 11, Crowley said budget cuts to the fire department hindered their firefighting efforts.

In an interview with FOX 11’s Gigi Graciette, Crowley said she’s been sounding the alarm about what the fire department needs many times in the past.

LAFD Chief slams budget cuts, says department was let down

As California's wildfires continue to spread, Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley criticized the city's decision to cut mor than $17 million in funding for the department, and says that the city let her and her firefighters down.

Crowley said since 2010, the amount of calls firefighters have responded to has doubled, but there are fewer fire stations now than there were then – and 68 fewer firefighters.

"This isn't a new problem for us," Crowley said to FOX 11 on Jan. 10. "The fire department needs to be funded appropriately so that I can look any community member in the eye and say your LAFD’s got your back."

LAFD budget cuts

By the numbers:

According to Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia, the city cut the LAFD's funding by $17.6 million in the 2025 fiscal year, which started on July 1, 2024. Compared to the city's other departments, the LAFD saw the second-largest cut, next to street services.

Looking at the budget summaries for the 2023-2024 fiscal year and the 2024-2025 fiscal year, though, shows the year-over-year difference is closer to about $30 million.

Bass responds to budget cuts

During Friday's press conference, and repeatedly in the past, Bass said that no budget cuts were made to the fire department.

"Let me just be clear about the budget, the fire department was not cut. I have done two budgets in my time here, in both budgets, the budget was increased and I will anticipate that it will be increased this time as well," Bass told reporters Friday.