According to testimony from 181 survivors of the 2025 Palisades Fire, the Los Angeles Fire Department received an order to “stand down” around 3 p.m. on January 7, effectively abandoning firefighting operations in Pacific Palisades and Malibu as the fire spread under tropical depression driven winds. Residents say the fire department made no visible effort to protect homes, leaving communities to “burn out” while residents fought the flames themselves.
While very few witnesses defended the fire department due to misinformation that there were hurricane force winds, the majority spoke the truth of the fire department’s failure to even attempt to service their taxpayers.
Witnesses report that winds pushed the fire southwest toward the coast, where the progression was eventually halted by the Franklin Fire burn scar, a natural barrier that prevented further devastation across Malibu. Many residents believe that without that containment line, the entire region could have been lost.
Several testimonies claim that firefighting resources were diverted to protect Brentwood, described by survivors as a “celebrity neighboring community,” while Pacific Palisades and Malibu were left without active defense. Witnesses consistently report that fire crews were either absent or seen retreating, even as trash collection, Amazon delivery, and rideshare services continued to operate in evacuation zones.
Around 4 p.m., the fire department allegedly “ran out of water,” according to multiple reports. However, one witness states that $12,000 worth of water was used by the fire department at personal expense, successfully defending several nearby structures, a stark contrast to official claims of limited resources.
Residents have been described as the “true heroes” during the fire, saying that ordinary people with hoses, shovels, and improvised firebreaks saved what they could while the fire department “failed and refused” to assist. Some witnesses report seeing firefighters laughing as homes burned, behavior that survivors compared to similar to the hot mic incident at the Palisades Community Meeting held after the disaster where the fire department is heard laughing at fire victims who foolishly thanked them.
Criticism of the Fire Department extends beyond the immediate response. Current and former (2018 Woolsey) Fire victims in Malibu say they now face contradictory and unrealistic demands in order to rebuild, including:
- A 20-foot-wide access road with a turnaround sufficient for two fire trucks to pass, despite such a scenario never occurring since not a single fire truck is ever seen during a fire (2018 Woolsey or 2025 Palisades).
- Fire flow requirements for fire hydrants that will never be touched or used during an actual fire.
- Mandatory undergrounding of power lines, even though power is routinely shut off in Malibu during winds exceeding 10 mph.
Survivors argue that these post-fire requirements make it nearly impossible for victims to rebuild their homes while adhering to a false promise of service that the fire department will even attempt to save homes or lives given their previous failures and refusal to help during a fire.
As one resident summarized, “They were there for the standing ovation at the Oscars and the Grammys, but nowhere to be found when we needed them most.”
If you witnessed the Palisades Fire, let your voice be heard here.