Edits to Palisades Fire After-Action Report Raise Questions

The Los Angeles Fire Department’s official after-action report on the deadly Palisades fire is facing renewed scrutiny after newly revealed internal edits raised questions about whether key findings about leadership and preparedness were softened before the report’s public release.

The report, released in October after months of anticipation from victims and residents, already detailed major failures in LAFD’s response to the Jan. 7 blaze, which killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

But recent reporting showing that earlier drafts contained stronger language about how the department staffed up ahead of the fire, and how the response was led, has raised new questions about transparency and accountability, even as city leaders press ahead with an independent investigation into what went wrong.

According to records obtained by the Los Angeles Times through public records requests, one earlier draft said the department’s decision not to fully staff up and pre-deploy all available resources ahead of extreme wind forecasts did not follow LAFD policy during red flag days–periods when weather conditions such as high winds and low humidity sharply increase fire danger. That language was later revised in the final draft, which instead described pre-deployment efforts that went “above and beyond” standard practice.

Other changes cited in the reporting included the removal or rewording of passages describing delays in assigning crews on the day of the fire and references to failures that were reframed as “primary challenges.” The edits were made during an internal review process while Ronnie Villanueva was serving as interim fire chief, according to the Times.

Even with those revisions, the final report still painted a troubling picture of the department’s response, describing disorganized leadership, communications breakdowns and confusion over roles and responsibilities during the early stages of the fire. It said the initial response fell short of what was needed and underestimated the scale of the incident, as staffing, coordination and command problems mounted as the fire rapidly spread.

In a statement issued over the weekend, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez raised concerns about in-house after-action reports being overseen by political appointees, arguing that independent reviews are necessary to ensure accountability and prevent future disasters.

“After-action reports are meant to provide a comprehensive and transparent assessment of key leadership decisions to ensure proper accountability,” she said. “If these reports are purposefully watered down to cover up failures, it leaves Angelenos, firefighters, and city officials without a full understanding of what happened and what needs to change.”

Rodriguez added: “After-action reports must be independent to ensure honest assessments in order to avoid repeating disastrous errors and to protect our communities in the future.”

In its list of “challenges,” the report said the initial response “lacked the appropriate resources for the weather conditions typically associated with Red Flag conditions” and that “Several Chief Officers had limited or no experience in managing an incident of such complexity.” The report also described delays in approving additional resources, which it said hampered firefighters’ ability to defend homes as the fire intensified.

The renewed questions come amid broader scrutiny of the city’s handling of the Palisades fire and an earlier New Year’ Day blaze, known as the Lachman fire, that later reignited into the larger disaster.

After separate reporting by The Times raised concerns that firefighters were ordered to leave the burn area while it was still smoldering, Mayor Karen Bass called for a thorough investigation into the LAFD’s response, saying a full accounting was necessary to understand what occurred during January’s wildfires.

Fire Chief Jaime Moore, who took office last month, has been tasked with commissioning the investigation. Moore has said in a recent television interview that the department has adopted roughly three-quarters of the report’s 42 recommendations, which include changes to training, communications and deployment protocols.

Councilmember Traci Park, whose district includes Pacific Palisades and who requested an independent, outside after-action report into the city’s response to the fire that was later approved by the City Council, did not respond by press deadline.

The Los Angeles Fire Department and the Mayor’s Office were also asked to comment on the revisions to the report and whether they believe the final version fully reflects what went wrong before the fire. Neither LAFD nor the Mayor’s Office responded by press deadline.

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