Current, retired LAFD firefighters demand chief Kristin Crowley’s resignation: ‘You have failed’

A five-page letter from current and retired LAFD firefighters, obtained by NewsNation, has demanded that Crowley step down. The letter blamed her leadership for failures in managing the department’s response to the wildfires, claiming better preparation could have reduced fatalities and property damage.

"Your job as Fire Chief was to prepare us, the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude and you have failed," the firefighters wrote. Later they added, "If you had done things right and prepared the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude, fatalities would have been reduced, and property would have been saved."

It further argued that her resignation “would be best for the citizens of Los Angeles.”

Crowley, who in 2022 became the first female and openly gay fire chief to lead the department, has faced scrutiny for a lack of effective leadership. Since her appointment, 125 commanders have retired, resulting in leadership challenges within firehouses throughout the city. She has also prioritized DEI-type initiatives, saying she was “super inspired” to bring diversity into the department.

"While no one is saying that this fire could have been stopped, there is no doubt among all of us that if you had done things right and prepared the LAFD for an incident of this magnitude, fatalities would have been reduced, and property would have been saved,” the letter added.

Crowley has claimed to local news outlets that the city failed her department by leaving it underfunded. This comes following revelations that Mayor Karen Bass has cut the fire department’s funding by over $17 million in the city’s latest budget. Bass has recently responded to calls for her own resignation by announcing an external investigation into the city’s response to the wildfires. She added that ”internally we absolutely are looking back at what happened.”

"We need to look back at everything that happened,” Bass told reporters, according to the New York Post. “But to me, over the last week, the most important thing was to get past the fires to make sure that on Monday and Tuesday, we’re not facing a danger again.”

As part of rebuilding efforts, Bass appointed former Los Angeles Police Commission President Steve Soboroff as the city's "chief recovery officer." Soboroff, tasked with coordinating recovery efforts, will work to restore affected communities and ensure that resources are effectively allocated for recovery.

“Our absolute priority is to return Angelenos to their homes and rebuild. Steve knows our communities, he knows how to activate City Hall, he knows how to engage the public, business, non-profit and philanthropic resources needed for this massive effort,” Bass said.