LA's water boss struggles to explain why they ran out of WATER
Los Angeles' water boss who makes $750,000 a year couldn't quite explain why fire hydrants have run dry during the disastrous wildfires in a bumbling video. During a press conference Wednesday, Janisse Quiñones (pictured), the newly appointed chief executive officer and chief engineer of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, said all water storage tanks in the Pacific Palisades area 'went dry' as flames continue to rage on.
At least seven people have been killed and almost 180,000 forced to leave their homes amid the most destructive blaze in the county's history. Quiñones, who previously worked for PG&E prior to being appointed in May, said the third water tank ran out at about 3am local time Wednesday, after the first tank ran out around 4.45pm, and the second at approximately 8.30pm - each at about 1,000,000 gallons each. 'Those tanks help with the pressure on the fire hydrants in the hills of Palisades, and because we were pushing so much water in our trunk line, and so much water was being used before it can get to the tanks - we were not able to fill the tanks fast enough,' she explained. 'So the consumption of water was faster than we can provide water in our trunk line,' she continued, adding that there is water in the truck line, but it 'cannot get up the hill because we cannot fill the tanks fast enough.'
After someone asked her for the number of hydrants that cannot get water because of these issues, Quiñones started to stumble on her words. 'We, um, we were trying to keep water at all altitudes on the Palisades, and I think about three in the morning, that's when - uh - the hydrants went dry above the Brentwood area. We were able to push water on the, on that trunk line on, on the east side of that, um, and we have some water on high elevations - 16-80,000, but at 3,000, all of the, at 3am, all of the, uh, fire hydrants went dry in the Palisades,' she added.
Quiñones said that about 20 water tanks are now being sent from construction crews to firefighters to help them continue to fight the growing blaze. 'We identified other areas in our system where tankers can re-fill - it takes about 30 minutes to re-fill about 4,000 gallons of water, and we're constantly moving that water to the fire department to get them as much water as we can. She further warned that because the department is 'pushing the water system so hard,' the quality of water 'is decreasing in the Palisades area.
A boil water notice has since been issued for the Los Angeles area over the next 48 hours, the CEO said. In the midst of the horrific fires, furious LA residents have slammed local politicians for a shocking litany of failures which have exacerbated the deadly wildfires currently razing the city. Complaints range from Mayor Karen Bass being AWOL in Africa, to fire hydrants running out of water and electricity to power cables being left on to fuel the flames.
Businessman and mayoral candidate Rick Caruso (pictured) blasted local officials for failing to refill the water supplies despite knowing that strong winds which could whip up wildfires were on the way. 'Their hands have been tied. They can't fight a fire without water and the resources that are needed. Everybody knew these winds were coming,' Caruso told Fox 11. 'The other question has to be, were all the things in place to try to mitigate the damage here? The real issue to me here is two-fold.'
'We've had decades to remove the brush in these hills that spreads so quickly, and the second is, we've got to have water. My understanding is the reservoir was not refilled in time, in a timely manner to keep the hydrants going... this is basic stuff, this isn't high science here. It's all about leadership and management that we're seeing a failure of, and all of these residents are paying the ultimate price for that,' Caruso continued.
Audio of communications between firefighters confirms that first responders ran out of water in some areas. 'We have no water, it is... we're doing the best we can up there. We are making sure that people are out of the way,' one firefighter can be heard saying. Lawyer and Pacific Palisades native Rachel Darvish, 49, whose home has likely been engulfed by the flames, questioned why officials like Mayor Karen Bass did not plan ahead despite knowing 'critical' weather conditions were on the way.
I don't know if our house is still there, what I can tell you is I have a photo of the neighbor's house which is gone,' Darvish told Fox News. 'We have questions. I know where I am right now, but I don't know where my mayor was when this was happening. I do know now where she was.' 'Nobody told us where to go or what to do. I didn't even have an evacuation order. I love the fire department, I love our fire personnel (but) we need more, where were they?' Speaking about Bass, she continued: 'For someone to be in charge of my town - where were you? Where were you when the decisions should have been made about how to get in and out of places.' Many celebrities have seen their multi-million dollar mansions burnt to the ground as the fire spread to Hollywood Hills, prompting criticism of city officials who have been blamed for failing to adequately prepare for the disaster.
Los Angeles' water boss who makes $750,000 a year couldn't quite explain why fire hydrants have run dry during the disastrous wildfires in a bumbling video. During a press conference Wednesday, Janisse Quiñones (pictured), the newly appointed chief executive officer and chief engineer of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, said all water storage tanks in the Pacific Palisades area 'went dry' as flames continue to rage on.
At least seven people have been killed and almost 180,000 forced to leave their homes amid the most destructive blaze in the county's history. Quiñones, who previously worked for PG&E prior to being appointed in May, said the third water tank ran out at about 3am local time Wednesday, after the first tank ran out around 4.45pm, and the second at approximately 8.30pm - each at about 1,000,000 gallons each. 'Those tanks help with the pressure on the fire hydrants in the hills of Palisades, and because we were pushing so much water in our trunk line, and so much water was being used before it can get to the tanks - we were not able to fill the tanks fast enough,' she explained. 'So the consumption of water was faster than we can provide water in our trunk line,' she continued, adding that there is water in the truck line, but it 'cannot get up the hill because we cannot fill the tanks fast enough.'
After someone asked her for the number of hydrants that cannot get water because of these issues, Quiñones started to stumble on her words. 'We, um, we were trying to keep water at all altitudes on the Palisades, and I think about three in the morning, that's when - uh - the hydrants went dry above the Brentwood area. We were able to push water on the, on that trunk line on, on the east side of that, um, and we have some water on high elevations - 16-80,000, but at 3,000, all of the, at 3am, all of the, uh, fire hydrants went dry in the Palisades,' she added.
Quiñones said that about 20 water tanks are now being sent from construction crews to firefighters to help them continue to fight the growing blaze. 'We identified other areas in our system where tankers can re-fill - it takes about 30 minutes to re-fill about 4,000 gallons of water, and we're constantly moving that water to the fire department to get them as much water as we can. She further warned that because the department is 'pushing the water system so hard,' the quality of water 'is decreasing in the Palisades area.
A boil water notice has since been issued for the Los Angeles area over the next 48 hours, the CEO said. In the midst of the horrific fires, furious LA residents have slammed local politicians for a shocking litany of failures which have exacerbated the deadly wildfires currently razing the city. Complaints range from Mayor Karen Bass being AWOL in Africa, to fire hydrants running out of water and electricity to power cables being left on to fuel the flames.
Businessman and mayoral candidate Rick Caruso (pictured) blasted local officials for failing to refill the water supplies despite knowing that strong winds which could whip up wildfires were on the way. 'Their hands have been tied. They can't fight a fire without water and the resources that are needed. Everybody knew these winds were coming,' Caruso told Fox 11. 'The other question has to be, were all the things in place to try to mitigate the damage here? The real issue to me here is two-fold.'
'We've had decades to remove the brush in these hills that spreads so quickly, and the second is, we've got to have water. My understanding is the reservoir was not refilled in time, in a timely manner to keep the hydrants going... this is basic stuff, this isn't high science here. It's all about leadership and management that we're seeing a failure of, and all of these residents are paying the ultimate price for that,' Caruso continued.
Audio of communications between firefighters confirms that first responders ran out of water in some areas. 'We have no water, it is... we're doing the best we can up there. We are making sure that people are out of the way,' one firefighter can be heard saying. Lawyer and Pacific Palisades native Rachel Darvish, 49, whose home has likely been engulfed by the flames, questioned why officials like Mayor Karen Bass did not plan ahead despite knowing 'critical' weather conditions were on the way.
I don't know if our house is still there, what I can tell you is I have a photo of the neighbor's house which is gone,' Darvish told Fox News. 'We have questions. I know where I am right now, but I don't know where my mayor was when this was happening. I do know now where she was.' 'Nobody told us where to go or what to do. I didn't even have an evacuation order. I love the fire department, I love our fire personnel (but) we need more, where were they?' Speaking about Bass, she continued: 'For someone to be in charge of my town - where were you? Where were you when the decisions should have been made about how to get in and out of places.' Many celebrities have seen their multi-million dollar mansions burnt to the ground as the fire spread to Hollywood Hills, prompting criticism of city officials who have been blamed for failing to adequately prepare for the disaster.
