"In January, when crews fighting the fast-spreading Palisades fire were hampered by low water pressure and dry hydrants, Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered an investigation. After a 10-month review, California officials concluded in a that the water supply in Southern California was "robust" at the time of the fire and that the water system isn't designed to handle such large, intense wildfires."
"The state's findings, released Thursday, also address an issue that has been a point of frustration and anger among residents in Pacific Palisades: the fact that Santa Ynez Reservoir, which can hold 117 million gallons of drinking water, was empty for repairs at the time of the fire. "Draining the Santa Ynez reservoir was necessary to protect public health while repairing the tear in its cover and required by both federal and state regulations," the report says."
""The report confirms that the Santa Ynez Reservoir was offline to make necessary repairs and that issues with water pressure during the fire response were due to the extraordinary demand on the system, not because of inadequate water supply," said Ellen Cheng, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power."
During the January Palisades fire, hydrants experienced low pressure and ran dry while the nearby Santa Ynez Reservoir was empty for repairs. State officials concluded after a 10-month review that the regional water supply was robust at the time but that the distribution system is not designed to handle very large, intense wildfires. Draining Santa Ynez was required to protect public health while repairing a tear in its cover under federal and state rules. Even if full, the system's pipe flow rates would have quickly been overwhelmed by the extraordinary firefighting demand.
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