Los Angeles Fire Department budget sustained cuts but saw overall increase
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(LOS ANGELES) — Amidst confusion around budget cuts affecting the Los Angeles Fire Department while thousands of firefighters are battling at least five wildfires, ABC News dug into the city budgets and other publicly available documents for the city.
In May 2024, the city of Los Angeles adopted a Fiscal Year 2024 – 2025 budget that cut the appropriations for the fire department by $17.6 million from the previous year.
At the time, the city of Los Angeles was negotiating the union contract with the firefighters’ union, the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City.
On Nov. 5, the City Council voted to approve a union contract for 2024 – 2028. A report that was sent to the city a day prior outlined the fiscal impact of the contract and stated that it would cost approximately $76 million in the 2024 – 2025 fiscal year. This was to increase salaries and benefits for union members.
On Dec. 17, 2024, the LA Fire Commission sent a report to Mayor Karen Bass by Fire Chief Kristin Crowley. In it, Crowley stated that the department is facing “unprecedented operational challenges due to the elimination of critical civilian positions and a $7 million reduction” in overtime hours.
With the new contract approved, the budget for the fire department in Fiscal Year 2024 – 2025 increased from $819.6 million to $895.6 million. When compared to the previous year’s budget (Fiscal Year 2023 – 2024), this current year’s fire department budget in total is larger by $58.4 million. According to a document from the city administrative officer, the increase in this year’s budget was approved specifically to meet salary and benefit increases included in the new union contract.
In an interview with a local FOX station on Friday, Crowley responded after being repeatedly asked if the city failed her and her department, she said “yes,” echoing her letter to the mayor from December.
“My number one priority has been and will continue to be, that our firefighters get what they need, so that they can serve the community. That is number one. I’m going to turn down the noise when it comes to any type of criticism, because every decision that I make is going to be based off of what my firefighters need,” Crowley said.
At least 11 people are believed to be dead — with the Los Angeles County sheriff saying he expects that number to rise — as devastating fires spread across Southern California amid dry and windy conditions. The largest blaze, the Palisades Fire, in Pacific Palisades, has scorched over 22,000 acres, destroyed thousands of structures and is 11% contained. The Eaton Fire, in Altadena, now stands at more than 14,000 acres and 15% contained. More than 150,000 people are under evacuation orders.
(LOS ANGELES) — Weather officials have issued a “Particularly Dangerous Situation” red flag warning for western Los Angeles County and most of Ventura County beginning on Tuesday at 4 a.m. into Wednesday at noon, warning of a heightened fire risk even as crews rush to extinguish blazes tearing through the region.
A new Santa Ana wind event is forecast today through Wednesday with the strongest winds Tuesday into Wednesday. Peak winds for this next event will be weaker than those last week.
Nevertheless, winds will be strong enough to potentially cause explosive fire growth.
On Monday morning and the rest of the day, winds will begin to pick up in the mountains and higher elevations, gusting 20 to 30 mph, locally as high as 50 mph.
Those winds are likely continue to fuel the historic wildfires raging in Southern California. The largest, the Palisades Fire, has spread by late Sunday to 23,713 acres with only 13% containment, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Thousands of firefighters are battling the blazes across 45 square miles of densely populated Los Angeles County. About 105,000 people remain under mandatory evacuation orders and another 87,000 are under evacuation warnings.
By Tuesday morning at 4 a.m., when the “PDS” conditions begin, gusts in the mountains are expected to near 70 mph possibly and humidity could be as low as 8% for some of the area
This Santa Ana wind event will be slightly in different areas than last week, more into western L.A. County, most of Ventura County and even part of Santa Barbara County.
“Emergency responders are ready tonight. Pre-positioned firefighters and engines are spread around Southern California,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said on social media late on Sunday. “Stay safe. Be ready to evacuate if you get the order.”
The strongest winds will begin to subside by noon on Wednesday. But forecast models show still very gusty winds in the mountains at noon Wednesday.
Higher humidity and lighter winds are forecast late in the week and into the weekend.
Brandon assists Janice with daily exercises, as well as helps her move around the house. ABC News
(CHICAGO) — Janice Will was diagnosed in 2012 with Parkinson’s, a condition that causes parts of the brain to deteriorate, causing tremors and balance problems.
“When she broke her femur and it was close to the artery…it could have been lights out,” Brandon Will, Janice’s son, said about his mother.
Brandon, who lives with his mother near Chicago, Illinois, soon realized his mom needed 24/7 access to care.
Since then, Janice, who is now 73, has seen the emotional, physical and financial strain of needing care and spoke to ABC News about often feeling like a burden to her son.
“He likes to tell me I’m not a burden, but I feel like a burden because he would have been on a career in New York…he sort of edited his dream to be different, by including me.”
Brandon, 42, reminds his mom that she is not weighing him down, telling her, “Parkinson’s is the burden. It’s one we share.”
“I think people get to these points where there is an illness or something that comes earlier than you’d expect. You realize how many systems aren’t in place,” Brandon told ABC News.
Janice and Brandon’s story mirrors the struggles many Americans are forced to reckon with when a loved one falls ill.
In the U.S., 48 million people have taken on the role of becoming a caregiver to a family member — with little to no financial help, according to Susan Reinhard, formerly the senior vice president of AARP’s Public Policy Institute and chief strategist for the organization.
“There are 48 million family caregivers who are unpaid. And if you did have to pay them, it would be $600 billion. I keep emphasizing the billion dollars because it’s quite amazing. It’s more than all out-of-pocket spending in the United States on health care,” Reinhard told ABC News.
Reinhard said that caregivers need support to avoid a financial crisis, saying the services many seek are provided through the state and federal program called Medicaid, but access and resources vary state by state.
And while help is out there, Brandon and his mom could only access the Medicaid benefits they needed in Illinois, moving from Michigan to be able to do so.
In Illinois, Brandon applied through Medicaid to get paid as a familial caregiver. However, he only gets paid for 19 hours a week, even though he provides around-the-clock care for his mom.
“I’ll hand her her clothes in the morning, help her pick out an outfit…just ‘cause she can’t, at this point, stand in front of the closet.”
His hourly rate is less than the state’s minimum wage.
Brandon and Janice are still researching and applying for as many benefits as they can to stay afloat. They are currently using the Meals on Wheels program in their area and are looking for a part-time caregiver so Brandon can focus on his career outside of care work.
However, he says the state and federal program is already stretched thin. “There’s like 20,000 people on the list in Illinois who are like us, who qualify for a home health aide. And they just aren’t available.”
In January, Brandon and Janice Will hosted an open mic, sharing stories through the viewpoints of those living with caregiving, disability, illness and aging.Now, Brandon Will has concerns following the Trump administration’s executive orders to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.
“With these orders to kind of remove all the DEIA. This administration, they added the A to the end of it that was never there and it’s for accessibility,” Brandon told ABC News. Brandon said his and his mother’s fears spurred him to start the open mic reading series.
“I think anybody who is dealing with disability or aging or caregiving knows that like willpower only gets you so far. You know, like you need it. It’s crucial. But, you know, you can’t really get anywhere without a community,” Brandon said.
To caregivers — even minimal resources can be crucial while juggling two or more jobs. An AARP report highlighted that 60% of family caregivers are working jobs in addition to being caregivers; 40% are men, but, at 60%, it is mainly women taking on this role. And on top of having a job and doing care work, 30% of those caregivers take care of their own children, too.
People like Ty Lewis.
In an apartment complex just outside of Los Angeles, Lewis, 45, and her husband are caring for Ty’s mother, Gertrude Jordan.
Jordan, 80, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s nearly 10 years ago, a disease 6.9 million Americans are living with. Lewis explained watching her mom’s slow progression throughout the years has been hard. “As a woman, it kind of shakes you. It does something to you because it’s just like … that’s your mom, the woman that gave birth to you.”
Lewis told ABC News her mom still receives a pension of $66,000 annually from her years of teaching –but it’s not enough. Her care each month costs more than $6,000.
“Last year was $90,000,” Lewis said about the annual cost of her mother’s care in 2023. “She only made $66,000. She doesn’t have it. Her savings are depleted. Currently, we are not getting any support because they keep saying my mom makes too much money. Just recently, my mom’s balance was $3.14.”
The financial strain cuts deep into both families. But it’s not just about the money. Each caregiver acknowledged the emotional and physical challenges they face daily — adding to the difficulties of the job.
“Caregiving has shifted things in me. Because it’s not really happening in everyone’s home or you don’t see it, people really don’t understand the magnitude of what’s coming,” Lewis told ABC News.
In December, Lewis went to Capitol Hill to advocate for the Older Americans Act (OAA), which targets older adults who are in greatest need by improving support for family caregivers and direct care workers and expands healthy aging programs. The Senate passed reauthorization for OAA in December and the bill is currently pending in the House.
Lewis also is pushing for care givers to be able to qualify for Medicaid. “I want it to look the same from state to state for every caregiver,” Lewis told ABC News.
AARP’s Reinhard warned Americans, saying, “If we do not help family caregivers, if they can no longer do what they’re doing, then we’re going to have a huge cost problem. There is definitely a care crisis in America right now.”
Taking each day in stride, Lewis hopes to spread awareness on the struggles caregivers face daily, documenting her journey with her mother by posting clips on social media.
“I want people to know that they can find joy in the journey. That’s my whole mission. And so, while it is hard, I want to show people that it’s hard, but it’s doable. It’s hard, but it’s beautiful.”
(LOS ANGELES) — Less than a week after a massive wildfire shut down California’s Interstate 5, a major freeway between Los Angeles and the San Joaquin Valley, the traffic artery was closed again due to heavy snow, authorities said.
Both the southbound and northbound lanes of Interstate 5 remained closed Monday morning and the California Highway Patrol said there is no timeline on when it will be reopened.
A CHP spokesperson told ABC News heavy snow caused the closure of I-5 from Castiac, near where the Hughes Fire shut down the freeway on Wednesday. The stretch of I-5 is also known as “The Grapevine.”
The area, as well as other mountainous areas north of Los Angeles, was forecast to get six inches to a foot of snow.
The Hughes Fire, one of a series of major blazes that have devastated the Los Angeles metro region since Jan. 7, erupted on Wednesday near Castaic Lake reservoir, about 45 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. The fire, fanned by strong Santa Ana winds, grew quickly to more than 10,000 acres, prompting the mandatory evacuation of about 30,000 residents and putting another 20,000 on an evacuation watch.
More than 4,000 firefighters responded to the blaze, attacking it from the ground and air and preventing it from damaging any homes, officials said.
The Hughes Fire is one of four active fires still burning across Southern California, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The Hughes fire was 95% contained on Monday morning, according to Cal Fire.
A weekend storm brought much-needed rain to Southern California. But the first significant rain in the area since June 1 was also accompanied by threats of a different natural disaster. Overnight, a flash flood warning was issued by the National Weather Service for Malibu, where homes and businesses were destroyed by the Palisades Fire, the largest of the blazes to devastate Los Angeles County this month.
Pacific Coast Highway west of Topanga Canyon Boulevard in Los Angeles County was closed around 4:30 p.m. Sunday due to mudflows, officials said. Mudflows in the burn-scarred areas of fire-ravaged Pacific Palisades also caused the shutdown of several main roads in the area, including the northbound lanes of Sunset Boulevard, officials said.
As of Monday morning, parts of Los Angeles County had received 1.2 inches of rain. Downtown Los Angeles had gotten nearly a half-inch of rain and Santa Monica received almost an inch. Meanwhile, Santa Barbara County got 1.75 inches of rain and Ventura County, south of Los Angeles, had received 1.36 inches.
An additional half an inch of rain is possible for parts of Southern California through Tuesday.
The rain was a welcomed sight to firefighters still battling active blazes in the region, including the Hughes Fire.
The Palisades Fire, which started on Jan. 7 and exploded to over 23,000 acres, was 94% contained on Monday. The fire destroyed nearly 7,000 structures, including homes and businesses, and killed 11 people.
The Eaton Fire, which also broke out on Jan. 7 in Pasadena and Altadena, was 98% contained on Monday. The Eaton Fire burned more than 14,000 acres, destroyed more than 9,400 structures, including homes and businesses, and was blamed for the deaths of 17 people.
The fourth active Southern California fire was the Border 2 Fire south of San Diego near the Mexico border. The blaze, which started Thursday afternoon, was 43% contained on Monday after burning more than 6,600 acres of wildland.
“Rainfall overnight and into the morning hours has led to a substantial decrease in fire activity,” Cal Fire said in an update Monday morning. “While not ending the possibility of fires in the long term, the saturation of grass and other light, flashy fuels will lessen the threat of the spread of the Border 2 Fire.”
