The catastrophic fires raging across Los Angeles have exposed a harsh reality: years of Democrat mismanagement and budgetary neglect have left the city’s fire department woefully unequipped to handle the crisis.
Freddy Escobar, president of the United Firefighters of Los Angeles and a 35-year veteran of the LA Fire Department, broke down in tears recounting his futile attempts to warn city leaders of the inevitable disaster.
A particularly heartbreaking moment occurred when a CNN reporter reminded Escobar of his chilling warning just one month ago: “Someone will die” due to the fire department’s underfunding and understaffing.
His prediction has proven tragically accurate, with 24 deaths reported so far—and counting.
Kyung Lah: “You said it’s dire. Someone will die.”
Freddy Escobar:“It’s eerie listening to your words because that’s what occurred. So, its… let me just take a minute. Sorry… You’re not supposed to make me cry.”
At a budget hearing last May, Escobar warned, “If we cut one position, if we close one station, if we close one resource, the residents of Los Angeles are going to pay the ultimate sacrifice, and someone will die.”
For years, Escobar and other first responders begged the city council to rethink its budget. Yet those pleas fell on deaf ears.
Instead, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and her Democrat cronies focused on bloated social programs, green initiatives, and virtue-signaling policies, leaving critical public services to crumble.
The department now has fewer firefighters and medics than it did 15 years ago, despite emergency calls surging by over 50% during the same period.
“This is a woefully understaffed fire department,” Escobar told CNN. “We’re either going to have a fire department that’s going to reflect 2025, or we’re going to have a fire department that’s going to reflect the 1960s.”
Even as the fire department requested nearly $100 million to replace its aging fleet, the city’s leaders failed to act. Vehicles far past their service life sit sidelined, and 16 critical maintenance positions were eliminated in last year’s budget, according to CNN.
WATCH:
Mayor Karen Bass has come under fire for slashing the Los Angeles Fire Department’s (LAFD) budget by $17.6 million for the fiscal year 2024-2025.
This reduction included a $7 million cut in overtime pay, funds that were crucial for training and helicopter coordination essential in wildfire situations.
LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley had previously warned that these budget cuts would “adversely affect the Department’s ability to maintain core operations” and severely limit its capacity to respond to large-scale emergencies.
Bass also demanded an additional $49 million in budget cuts to the already cash-strapped Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) just days before wildfires ravaged the city.
This ill-timed decision, revealed in a leaked internal memo obtained by the Daily Mail, has sparked outrage among current and former fire officials who say the move left the department woefully unprepared for disaster.
The memo, dated January 6—merely a day before the Palisades Fire ravaged the region—proposed shutting down 16 fire stations across the city, slashing resources critical for combating wildfires and responding to emergencies.
Incompetent Governor Gavin Newsom has not escaped scrutiny either. Newsweek on Friday uncovered explosive evidence that just months before devastating wildfires, Newsom approved at least $101 million worth of cuts from seven “wildfire and forest resilience” programs.
The reductions, which were part of last year’s state budget and signed by Newsom in June, included a $5 million decrease for CalFire on fuel reduction teams.
These included revenue used to fund vegetation management work by the California National Guard.
Firefighters, already stretched thin due to budget constraints, have struggled with inadequate resources, including reports of dry fire hydrants in critical areas like Pacific Palisades. The lack of preparedness and resource allocation has not only hampered firefighting efforts but also endangered lives and property across Los Angeles.
Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass must resign in the wake of these devastating wildfires.
The post ‘Los Angeles are Going to Pay the Ultimate Sacrifice and Someone Will Die’ — LA Fire Union Chief Breaks Down in Tears Recalling Dire Warning to City Leaders But was Ignored appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.