Taking stock six months after devastating Southern California wildfires
3 min read
Bloomberg News
Six months after wildfires devastated two heavily populated regions of Los Angeles County, federal and state lawmakers from California had harsh words for the failure of the Republican-controlled Congress and the Trump Administration to approve nearly $40 billion in supplemental aid California Gov. Gavin Newsom
The two fires, driven by 100-mile-an-hour winds burned more than 58 square miles, destroyed more than 16,000 structures and killed 29 people, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Speaking at a ceremony marking the six-month anniversary of the Jan. 7 start of the blazes, Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, U.S. Reps. Brad Sherman and Judy Chu promised to keep fighting to secure additional disaster assistance in Washington D.C.
The politicians praised the speed of immediate efforts by the Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
They also promised to fight efforts by the Trump administration
“This is the time to invest more in FEMA, not threaten FEMA or take money away,” Padilla said.
“People in Texas need FEMA’s help,” Padilla said, referring to flash flooding that struck central Texas over the Fourth of July weekend and resulted in more than 100 deaths.
Credit analysts have said that the loss of FEMA funding
In his remarks at the event, Gov. Gavin Newsom said FEMA and federal recovery funding needs to be available to aid states like South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas, as well as California, when disaster strikes.
“Disaster recovery should never be used as political leverage whether the disaster is in California, North Carolina or Texas,” Chu said.
“This is the United States of America,” Chu said. “We help citizens when disasters strike no matter where they live and who they voted for.”
Trump has suggested at different junctures that California would not receive federal disaster aid unless it changes its water, forestry or immigration sanctuary policies.
“When Trump came to Palisades just days after the fires, I thought he would thank FEMA, instead he proposed abolishing FEMA. He then proposed holding hostage funding for California wildfire survivors, because of unrelated laws he opposes,” Sherman said. “I, Alex and Judy would never vote against another state’s disaster recovery just because we disagree with their political policies.”
Bloomberg News
Nearly 96% of properties, whose owners accepted federal agency aid, have been cleared, Newsom said. The public debris removal program cleaned up debris and toxins from 10,000 fire-damaged properties, he said.
The cleanup is on track to wrap up by the end of summer, setting records for both speed and scale, officials said.
Los Angeles County supervisors have been working on a “blueprint for rebuilding,” which outlines a six-pillar recovery plan to restore communities, Supervisor Kathryn Barger said.
Barger said the next six months will be pivotal, with a renewed focus on infrastructure. The county aims to reduce permitting turnaround times from 49 to 30 days, while upgrading water systems, undergrounding utilities and replacing outdated septic systems.
A utility rebuild task force was launched this month to coordinate infrastructure efforts, and Barger said she is evaluating the creation of a Reconstruction Authority for Altadena to streamline rebuilding without raising taxes. Altadena, which bore the brunt of the Eaton Fire, is an unincorporated part of the county.
A report evaluating what agencies could have done better in suppressing the fires and evacuating people is also due out by the end of the month.
“I understand how painful the uncertainty has been,” Barger said. “That’s why I directed county departments to fast-track an independent evaluation of our emergency response.”
The McChrystal Group, contracted to lead that evaluation, completed its data collection in June and is expected to release its findings later this month, she said.
