Newsom Launches Investigation To Explain Why Water Pressure Was Low, Hampering Fire Hydrants
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California Governor Gavin Newsom wants to know the reason fire hydrants were not able to get enough water pressure to properly function, so that they can prevent a like scenario from occuring again in the future.
L.A. Officials previously blamed “tremendous demand” as the reason fire hydrants started running dry amid the devastating fires. Here’s everything we know about the ongoing investigation
Gavin Newsom Calls Lack of Water Pressure For Fire Hydrants “Troubling” As Fire Sweeps Across L.A.
In just a few days since it started spreading on Jan. 7, Palisades Fire has caused untold damage to properties, forcing around 130,000 people out of their homes, and killed an estimated 11 people.
At present, Gov. Newsom wants answers to the less than perfect response to the fires. He believes that by fixing any and all errors that occurred this round, they will be better equipped to tackle any similar situation in the future and stop it from doing as much damage.
One of the ways he’s doing that is by ordering investigation into how the lack of water pressure and water supply has impacted ongoing efforts to fight the devastating Los Angeles fires.
The governor issued a letter to Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and the Los Angeles County Public Works, describing the incident as “deeply troubling.”
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He wrote: “While water supplies from local fire hydrants are not designed to extinguish wildfires over large areas, losing supplies from fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors.”
“We need answers to how that happened,” Newsom added in his memo, stating that officials have been directed to provide “an incident after-incident report.”
Taking to social media, Newsom briefed the public on the ongoing investigation launched based on his directives. “I am calling for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to local fire hydrants and the reported unavailability of water supplies from the Santa Ynez Reservoir,” Newsom wrote on X. “We need answers to ensure this does not happen again and we have every resource available to fight these catastrophic fires.”
The governor previously wrote on X, Jan. 9 that Southern California’s “water supplies are well-equipped to support local communities fighting the wildfires.”
“Many of the state’s largest reservoirs are currently at or above their historic average storage levels for this time of year,” he added.
On the other hand, the Los Angeles Times reported that the 117-million-gallon Santa Ynez Reservoir has been out of commission for nearly a year due to repairs.
This was due to a tear in the floating cover that created a space big enough for bird droppings and debris to slip through to the water supply. It’s not clear how long the repairs might take.
Be sure to catch up on everything happening with Palisades Fire right now. Come back here often for all Palisades Fire spoilers, news, and updates.
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