On January 7, amid dire warnings of strong winds, L.A. County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone and his team proactively retained all available firefighters, totaling about 1,800, when a fire broke out in Pacific Palisades. This tactical decision contrasted sharply with the L.A. city fire department, which had under-staffed its response despite the dangerous conditions. However, when the Eaton fire ignited later that day, county firefighters were already engaged elsewhere, leaving many Altadena residents feeling abandoned as they watched their homes burn without immediate fire protection.
"None of the 900 firefighters on duty would be going home. At 8 a.m., the next shift would join them. That meant the county had about 1,800 firefighters available when a fire erupted in Pacific Palisades a few hours later."
"I think we viewed the risk differently," Marrone said of L.A. city fire officials in an interview. Marrone's firefighters poured into Pacific Palisades that morning to assist the city, which had been caught flat-footed after staffing a fraction of its available engines amid a parched landscape and forecasts of life-threatening winds.
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